


i'm the one (with the ghosts in my bed)

by seoseouls (kihoseok)



Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Horror, Angst, Curses, Demons, Gen, Ghosts, I'll add more as we go, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Murder, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Romance, Slow Build, Slow-ish burn, Supernatural Elements, but also fluff, mild violence, siblings!guanlin and seonho
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-06
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-03-14 13:23:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 19
Words: 27,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13590948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kihoseok/pseuds/seoseouls
Summary: kang daniel is sent to live in a haunted house.what could go wrong?





	1. bad boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **let me play some games,**  
>  i’ll start, bad boy down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this fic is my BABY i love it so much i have so many spreadsheets and concepts arts for it,,, i'm so excited for this

Kang Daniel was not, in any sense of the term, a social butterfly, but when his parents had insisted he move out to their old mansion in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere to tend to it, he couldn’t say he was thrilled. 

He hadn’t wanted to in the beginning, but when he had visited the old house, it had slowly grown on him. Ivy crept up the sides of the ancient building, green fingers caressing the weathered maroon paint. Daniel couldn’t deny it was beautiful, a central tower emerging from the third floor and reaching towards the sky. The red paint paired with the brown trimmings around the sides gave it an even more rustic look than it already had, making it look ominous yet strangely comforting. The house had no shortage of space between the three floors it held, and frankly, Daniel was surprised his family hadn’t just sold it (as it looked like it would be worth a small fortune) rather than leaving it to their slightly irresponsible twenty-one-year-old to look after it. But a house was a house, and if Daniel could live there rent free, who was he to look a gift horse in the mouth.

He had just finished moving all of his things into the house (not that he needed much, the house was somehow fully furnished), storing his clothes in the armoire beside his bed before huffing and plopping himself onto the bed as he watched the moving vans pull out of the driveway. It seemed oddly bittersweet and final in a way, sure, he didn’t know them and they’d been paid to be there, but he felt they’d be the only human interaction he’d have in a while due to the lack of cellphone reception.

He had claimed the master bedroom, painted a darker red than the outside, it contained a four poster bed with a black canopy draped overhead with gold trim lining the slightly stiff sheets and dark wallpaper. There was a large armoire seated next to the door, a dark mahogany with emerald green detailing on the doors that Daniel had run his fingers over when he had first seen. There was a matching mahogany desk and chair tucked into the corner, a sad looking old lamp that had probably burnt out years ago atop the frame. There was still plenty of natural light in the room, so Daniel made a mental note to move the desk into the natural light of the arch. There were two bookcases as well, filled to the brim with dusty books that Daniel guessed hadn’t been touched in years. Overall, the room was still fairly empty, and the only true mark of Daniel it had was the AC/DC poster he had hung on one of the walls when he’d first began to store his things, needing his own touch in the room to make it feel less alien.

Daniel rose from the bed, stretching his limbs as he walked out of his room and down the hall. Next to his room was the library, an old room stacked to the ceiling with old volumes. It held two red upholstered chairs and a black table, paired with a chandelier so far up that Daniel could already feel his back hurting from changing the damn lightbulbs. Beyond that was another bedroom, this one with black wallpaper and navy sheets, a gold canopy over the bed. It seemed like the deep sea, or maybe the night sky. The dark blue curtains pulled tight over the windows, had the same gold trim as Daniel’s bed and an intricate pattern woven within. The room had something royal about it, and Daniel always felt amazed when he stood in it. However, he hadn’t chosen it for the sole reason that being in it for too long felt _wrong_. It felt like he was somehow intruding on someone. 

And with that, Daniel kept walking.

The next room down the hall was clearly a children's room, two small twin sized beds sat shoved into opposite corners in the room, with the musty smell of degrading fabric permeating the room. The wallpaper was a faded light yellow, crayon drawings painting the walls at Daniel’s knees. There was a stuffed rabbit and stuffed bear on their respective beds, each neatly made. Daniel wondered why such an old room was never remodeled, or at least why the drawings were never taken off the walls. But he supposed it was for a good reason, it seemed somehow sacrilegious to take down the drawings or to even change the room. It was something about the children, he mused.

The next room was a carbon copy of Daniel’s own, save for the whole room being black. Daniel had been struck by this when he had seen it, but had left before he had a chance to read too far into it. The room felt _wrong_ , like he wasn’t supposed to be in there. Like he had no right.

The final room calmed Daniel more than the rest, the emerald green sheets sparkled in the sunlight streaming through the window, the silver of the canopy glistening happily. It had been the next pick for Daniel, but somehow it hadn’t felt as right as his room had. 

Going downstairs, Daniel mused, was always a chore. The stairs were tall as the ceilings were as well, and the staircases were somewhat narrow. Sometimes, he thought he’d see shadows fleeting away when he rounded the corners into the staircase, but he figured it was just his brain playing tricks on him. The downstairs was fairly simple, just a dining room, the attached kitchen from the days the house had seen servants, the billiard room, library, parlor, and entryway. However, he stuck to just the library, kitchen, and parlor. The dining room filled him with a kind of suffocating fear that he could never find a source for, the room making his heart race and a sweat form on his brow. 

The billiard room was an entirely different story. The fear he felt in that room wasn’t anxiety, he felt as if someone, _something_ in that room didn’t want him there. The fear that coursed through his veins was that of fear of prey in front of a predator. He shivered as he walked by, his feet carrying him to the landline in the kitchen. 

_”Hello?”_

“Hey Jisung,” Daniel said, smiling as the comforting voice of his friend filled his ears.

 _”Daniel? What’s up? How’s the move going?”_ He asked, a smile evident in his voice.

“It’s good, Hyung, this place is huge,” He replied, seating himself on the counter, sanitation be damned. 

_”From the pictures you showed us, that place seems like a damn mansion. Hey guys, it’s Daniel!”_ His friend yelled, making Daniel’s grin grow even further.

 _”Daniel, dude, how’s the house?”_ He heard Jinyoung yell, before getting cut off by Woojin screaming _”CAN WE HAVE A PARTY OVER THERE SOMETIME DUDE,”_ causing Daniel to giggle into his palm.

He continued to talk with his friends for hours, convincing himself the giggling sound he heard was just the house settling.


	2. fly high

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **at the tip of the darkness**   
>  **it feels like you're looking at me**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> first, i'd like to say thank you all so much for the love this has been getting! i was a little hesitant to post this, but i'm glad i did! also, i'll be updating this fic's tags as we go, but i feel like i should warn everyone beforehand that yes, there will be themes of abuse, death (of course, and suicide in this. i'll try not to make anything too explicit but if you're not too comfortable with that, i'll put warnings in each note before the chapter begins.

Daniel was going crazy. Without the wifi set up (the company said it would take at LEAST two weeks to get a line out to him) he was left to his own devices, and reading old books from the library only entertained him so much before he began to grow stir crazy. He decided to explore the third floor of the house more, as he had only seen bits and pieces of it. There was really no reason for him to go up there as all of the rooms he needed to access were on the first and second floors, but he thought it would alleviate his boredom for a little while. 

The stairs, as usual, were a chore. He thought he saw a shadow dart behind the banister as he climbed up the stairs to the third floor, causing him to stiffen in the confined space. 

_’Nothing to be afraid of Daniel, it’s an old house, come on.’_ He chastised himself, shaking his head. 

When he arrived on the third floor, his first instinct was to open the blinds, allowing the afternoon sunlight to embrace the poorly lit hallway. He smiled as he looked around the hall, hugging himself as the warmth of the sunlight touched his skin. Next, he made his way into the first room, his feet creaking against the floorboard as he walked. As he opened the door, he was greeted with the sight of a largely unused room. It was another bedroom, this one with only a twin sized bed pushed into the corner. No canopy or posters, just the bed with plain yellowed sheets pulled over it. The room had an old oval rug spread across the otherwise bare floor, an ugly brown print painting the fabric with suspicious stains Daniel would rather not dwell on. There was a long-unused fireplace, something Daniel was surprised to find on the third floor. It was otherwise bare, and for some reason, the room felt unbearably _sad_ , like he had been alone in it for years. Eventually, he left, but not before casting one last glance at the suspicious stains. 

The next room, oddly enough, was locked. No room had been locked in the house that Daniel had seen, but not even the handle would budge. It didn’t wiggle, and the door didn’t so much as budge when Daniel leaned all his weight against it. Daniel added it to things to fix up about the house, assuming it was just a broken knob or hinges. Before he forgot, he decided to go down to the kitchen to add the repair to his already hastily scribbled list hung on the refrigerator, but as he rounded the corner to the stairs, something caught his eye.

A dark brown, leather-bound journal sat at the edge of the stairs, behind the banister where he’d seen the shadow. He looked around suspiciously, certain that it hadn’t been there before; all he was greeted by was the light of the sun and the deafening silence of the house. He leaned down slowly to pick up the book, a shock jolting through his body as his fingers brushed the cover. He opened the journal, thumbing through the pages. He was greeted with the scribbles and poor writing of a child, and his mind immediately drifted to the children’s room below him. As if in a trance, he walked down the stairs, list forgotten, and made for the room. 

When he arrived, Daniel was greeted by the signature musty scent of the room, a sudden trepidation filling him as he passed the entryway. He ran his fingers lightly over the crayon drawings on the wall, almost as if they’d come to life and tell him the secrets that seemed to run amok in the walls. But alas, they wouldn’t.

But the journal would.

So Daniel sat down, back against the wall as he slumped onto the floor, journal in hand. He thumbed to the first page, and began to read.

_March 3rd, 1849_

_Mama got me this new ~~jurnal~~ journal today when she went into town with Minhyun-ie! She said I should share with Guanlin but I don’t want to. You will be our little ~~seekret~~ secret okay?  
-Seonho _

Daniel looked, up from the volume, rubbing his eyes. _1850?_ How long had this book been sitting around for? The pages felt old, sure, but certainly not 150 years old! And the two children, Guanlin and Seonho, were they the children who lived in this room? He shook his head like a dog trying to rid itself of water, and turned back to the journal.

_May 6th, 1849_

_Mama’s been acting oddly since Minhyun-ie left. I know she ~~mises~~ misses him, I do too. She stays in her room a lot now, and Guanlin and I sometimes go days without seeing her. Our maids are nice, so I guess that’s okay though!_

_-Seonho_

_May 20th, 1849_

_Mama has been gone for a while, Miss Nayoung says she’s resting, but we miss her! Guanlin and I went up to her room and she yelled at us to go away! Mama never yells! I miss when Minhyun-ie was here.  
-Seonho_

_June 15th, 1849_

_Mama looks bad. She’s very skinny and her ~~hare~~ hair looks like string. She keeps Guanlin and me in our room most of the day now, and I can hear her crying sometimes. I miss how things were, when is Minhyun-ie coming home?_

_-Seonho_

_August 29th, 1849_

_Mama keeps yelling, why is she yelling? I don’t understand why she is yelling. Guanlin is scared, and I don’t know what to do. We’re both a lot skinnier since Mama fired Miss Nayoung and the other servants, now she’s the only one who feeds us. I miss Miss Nayoung, I miss how things were._

_-Seonho_

_September 2nd, 1849_

_It’s almost Guanlin’s birthday, I hope Mama lets us do something. He’s going to be twelve! We do not have to do anything big, I just want to eat as a family or play together outside. I miss things._

_-Seonho_

That’s where the entries ended. Daniel looked up from the journal, dazed. From what he could glean, the kids’ mom had gone crazy after their older brother had left, locking her 11-year-old sons in their room. Daniel gulped as he looked around the room, a whole new story filling his head. Had the kids died? The entries just stopped, and the room looked like it was still set up for children. He shivered at the thought, closing the journal. Were the kids the giggling he heard? _Don’t be stupid, Daniel, ghosts don’t exist._ However, just as the thought crossed his mind, he heard a sniffle come from outside the door. 

Daniel froze, there was _no fucking way_ that he had heard that there just wasn’t. His fears, however, were confirmed when he heard another sniffle from outside the door. “Hello?” He called, fear evident in his voice. “Who’s there?” 

The sniffling stopped, instead replaced by a pregnant silence. “I won’t hurt you, okay? Just please come out. It’s not nice to scare people,” He said, and mentally he was hitting himself because _Who the hell talks to a ghost, let alone believes in them?_ The sniffling resumed, and Daniel felt a chill run down his spine as the door creaked open. There was no visible change, but he could _feel_ something enter the room. 

“G-Guanlin? Seonho? Is that you?” He asked, receiving no response. “I’m not here to hurt you, okay? I’m Daniel,” He said, once again, to no response and _oh my god, Kang Daniel was **losing his mind**_. 

“I’m sorry if I upset you by reading your journal,” He continued, a sudden stroke of genius hitting him. “I saw you like to draw, do you want to do some more? He asked, reaching for the pencil behind his ear and the pen in his pocket he used for marking off renovation spots. He set them on the floor, rolling them towards the door. “You can use them, okay? I promise I won’t get mad.” 

He sat there for a while, and right as he was getting ready to throw in the towel, because _Jesus Christ, he was talking to a ghost, ghosts didn’t **exist**_. When he saw the pen and pencil begin to roll on their own. At first, he was paralyzed, until he saw the pencil and pen shuffle around, giggles filling the room like the children were play fighting over which utensil to use. He chuckled despite himself, smiling at the innocence of it all. Eventually, the pen and pencil rolled towards the wall before they raised into the air, scribbles starting to appear on the wall.

Daniel was unnerved, to say the least. It wasn’t every day you saw _ghosts_ doodling on your wall, but there was something peaceful about watching the shapes form, and the gentle scraping of the pen against the wall. He watched them work for what seemed like hours, remaining silent as the children filled up the wall with designs. 

**( ~ * ~ )**

Daniel didn’t remember falling asleep, nor did he remember moving onto the bed with the rabbit on it, but he awoke when the sun was low on the horizon to tiny hands playing with his hair. “Candy,” He heard one of the children mumble, and he smiled sleepily as he realized they must have never seen anyone, let alone a _boy_ with pink hair. “Yeah, candy,” He replied, another smile gracing his face as he felt two tiny forms squirm into the bed with him. 

“Thank you, Daniel-ie,” He heard one of the children mutter, and he smiled again before drifting back off into the void of sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i love comments, they're my life's blood. also, if you want to find me other places, my twitter is choihyuks, instagram is hwikisses, and discord is whorechata#9132 !


	3. cruel fairytale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **when that door opens**   
>  **the light will reach me**   
>  **and forever after**   
>  **i will live happily**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> brief warning before i begin this chapter for mentions of suicide and abuse, it's nothing too heavy but i just want to be sure!

When Daniel awoke, he was exhausted. His head felt like it was full of cotton, his limbs heavy like lead as he shifted in the bed. He opened his eyes, only to see a man standing at the edge of the bed. He had short, dark brown, almost black hair and an admittedly handsome face. He wore a suit and tie, the only unsettling thing about him being a large rung of a bruise around his neck.

“You’re not them,” He murmured, his eyes burning holes into Daniel.

“’m not what?” He slurred, feeling his limbs weigh down even further into the bed, the sensation of exhaustion washing over him. The temptation of closing his eyes was almost too great to bear, but something inside him whispered to _keep his eyes open_ because if he didn’t they might never open again. 

“You’re. Not. Them,” The man said again, his voice getting louder with each word.

“I’m Daniel, this-this is my house,” He said, fighting his exhaustion even more.

“This is not your house!” The man roared, hands ripping the blanket off of Daniel. “You are not them! You don’t belong here!” His hands, from where they brushed Daniel, were cold as ice, a clamminess that didn’t seem human coating them.

“This- my house! It is!” He insisted, rolling over in the bed. It seemed to take all his energy to perform just that, his brain becoming even more muddled. 

_**”No!”**_ The man yelled, his eyes blazing. “Leave! _**You’ll hurt them!**_ ” 

“’m not gonna hurt… anyone,” Daniel slurred, his vision dipping in and out of black as he felt himself being torn off of the bed and onto the hard floor, pain blooming on his cheek and lip.

The last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was the frame of another man swinging the door open as the stranger screamed louder. 

**( ~ * ~ )**

Daniel found himself in the library of the house, the light from the lit candles on the chandelier dancing across the bookshelves. He was lain across a plush red sofa, a strange boy fussing over him as he groaned.

“Who are you?” He asked, trying to sit up.

“No!- I mean- don’t sit up,” The boy said, laying a hand on Daniel’s arm to lay him back down. “Minhyun took a lot from you, you need to rest,” 

“Who- what?” He said, moving to get up again.

“No! Don’t- aish,” The boy said, setting Daniel down again. “I guess I should explain things,”

“Yeah, that’d help,” Daniel said, scrubbing his eyes with his hands. “That guy- was he a ghost? I mean he had-“ He gestured around his neck “That thing.”

The boy sighed, his hand falling from Daniel’s arm. “Yeah- that was Minhyun,” He said, a sad smile tugging at his lips. “He was Seonho and Guanlin’s older brother,” 

“Is that the Minhyun Seonho talked about in his journals?” Daniel asked, scrubbing his eyes once again before looking over to examine the boy.

“The one and the same.” 

The boy was young looking, light brown hair fell into his eyes as he spoke. He had a thin frame that was practically drowning in the large blue dress shirt. He had large eyes and sallow cheeks, a cheerful yet haunting aura about him. He couldn’t have been older than 16, Daniel thought. 

“Why was he-“

“Screaming at you? Well, he was really protective of Guanlin and Seonho when they were alive you see. He was even with their mom when she adopted Guanlin from the orphanage in Thailand,” He said, taking the folded blanket from beside Daniel and unfolding it before resting it on top of him. “After he left for university in London, well you saw what happened. Miss Hwang lost her mind, and Guanlin and Seonho died after they caught the flu. They were too weak to fight the fever because of their lack of food, and well, they died,” The boy’s eyes held a certain sadness as he said it, his hands dancing across the wood detailing of the chair he sat on. “Miss Hwang never bothered to send for Minhyun to tell him his brothers died, and when he returned to the town and found out his brothers were dead, well…”

Daniel shook his head, closing his eyes as he lay his head down against the sofa. That was no way to live, and sure, he wasn’t exactly fond of the guy, but he could understand why he did what he did. “So… He’s a ghost?”

“Yes,” The boy grimaced again, fiddling with his sleeves. “We all are.”

“Wait, you’re one too?” Daniel said, his eyes shooting open to gaze at the boy again. He _looked_ alive, his cheeks had color and his skin was bright even his eyes sparkled in the candlelight.

“Yes,” He sighed, a sad smile painting his face. 

“Wait- if you’re both ghosts and I can see you, why can’t I see Seonho and Guanlin?” He asked, head spinning. 

“Well, you could see Minhyun because he manifested himself using your energy, that’s why you felt so tired. As for me, well,” He paused, eyes drifting back to the wood on the chair. “This place is special.”

“Special how? I mean, I know this isn’t the library, the chandelier has light bulbs, not candles, and the chairs are different, but it _is_ the library,” His eyebrows furrowed as he took in his surroundings, lips pursing.

“Well- yeah,” He said, lips forming a pout as he thought. “This place is kind of like an in between. It’s where us ghosts can talk to people, but the living can’t come here normally,”

“Wait- so am I dead?” Daniel asked, panic rising in his chest as he began to sit up.

“No no no!” The boy said, waving his hands as he ushered Daniel back onto the sofa. “You’re just resting right now, Minhyun took a lot out of you. I guess because it was a ghost that drained you, you could come here. But I swear you’re not dead, I’d be able to feel it!” He said, and Daniel felt his heart rate rest again. 

“So what am I supposed to do now?” He asked, looking around.

“Well I’d guess you just rest here until your physical body is rested enough to wake up,” He said, fiddling with his sleeves again.

“Well, how long will that be?”

The boy sighed again, rubbing his face with his hand. “It’s hard to tell, time doesn’t work here like it does in the living world, but it should be fairly soon.”

“How soon is soon?”

“I don’t know, about an hour? That’s about a night for you guys,” He said, shrugging.

“Okay, I can do an hour,” Daniel said, letting out a sigh of relief. “Could I at least read something?” He said, sensing the other boy tense as he shifted to adjust himself on the couch. 

“Sure!” He said, jumping up and clapping his hands together. “What would you like to read? We have any book that’s ever been in the house here!” 

“Uh, whatever you suggest?”

**( ~ * ~ )**

About an hour and a half later (Ghost realm time, Daniel found, was very hard to measure) Daniel saw his fingers growing transparent, almost able to read the words of his book through his own skin.

“Uh, we have a situation!” He almost yelled, causing the boy to run over from the corner where he was drawing. 

“It looks like it’s time for you to go back,” He said, smiling sadly. “Don’t worry, you’ll wake up safe in your own bed, I had some help with that,” The boy flashed him a bright smile, which would have been comforting had Daniel not been turning _literally fucking transparent._

“Wait!” Daniel said as the boy began to back away, causing him to jump. “Before I go, what’s your name?”

“It’s Lee Daehwi,” He said, flashing a sad smile. "It was nice talking to you Daniel, say hello to Seonho and Guanlin for me will you?”

“I will!” He said, waving at the other with his now almost transparent hand.

He never got the chance to ask Daehwi who the other boy poking his head out from behind the bookcase beside him was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and the plot thickens! who's the boy behind the bookcase hmm? but anyways, i'll be trying to update somewhat regularly from here on out, but i'm also trying to respond to every comment on this! thank you all for all the love again, and until next time!


	4. hobgoblin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **i'll show you, there’s still so much**   
>  **without even knowing my heart, don’t hide from me**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning in the chapter for abuse/suicide. i'm sorry i have to keep tagging this but it's a ghost story, what can i do?

When Daniel awoke, he felt as if his whole body was made of rock. 

He rolled over in bed, groaning, stretching his limbs before he sat up, scratching his head and letting out a yawn. As he rubbed his face, he left the scrape of cloth underneath his hands and froze.

_So it hadn’t been a dream._

He ran to the bathroom, slamming open the door and staring at himself in the mirror. Atop his cheek was an ugly black and blue bruise, a scrap of bandage over what Daniel assumed was a cut from when he’d been flung onto the floor. His lip was swollen and red, a cut splitting down the left side that hurt whenever he tried to smile. 

It had been real.

Daniel felt his hands begin to shake, his breathing becoming shallow as he felt the cold hand of fear wrap itself around his heart. His fists clenched, balling up so tightly he could feel his nails digging into his palms. His eyes darted around the room, wildly looking for the slightest movement to alert him to a threat. He flinched as he felt a cold hand on his shoulder, a small scream escaping his mouth.

 _Please, Daniel, I’m not here to hurt you._ A voice echoed inside his head, soft and hesitant. There was something inherently trustworthy to it, the soft tone mingling with his own thoughts like water flowing through his head. 

_You need to calm down, please,_ The voice pleaded, the cold touch moving to his hand, lifting and returning almost as if whoever was there was scared to touch him. _You’ll be alright, please._ The voice said, and Daniel felt his fingers relax as he sank down to the floor, the cold tile calming against his skin. _Good job,_ The voice praised, and Daniel felt himself relax a bit more. 

_You see that ring around your left thumb?_ The voice asked, and Daniel weakly nodded, bringing his hand up to his face to examine the ring. It was black, intricate designs lacing the band and curling around a deep blue jewel set in the center. _I had Sungwoon give that to you, it used to be mine. It will protect you from any of the bad spirits here, you just have to keep it on, okay?_ The voice said, and Daniel nodded again.

 _Daniel?_ The voice continued hesitantly, and Daniel nodded again. _Do you remember me?_ Daniel closed his eyes and thought back to the dream, to the boy who had helped him, to the library, and he opened his eyes. 

“Daehwi?”

 _Yes,_ The voice said, evidently relieved. _I promise I’ll explain things more, but I have to go soon, just try to stay calm, okay?_ He said, and Daniel blinked in confusion. 

“Why?”

_I can’t explain now, I’m almost out of time. But just trust me, _Daehwi said, and Daniel felt himself nodding once again. Daehwi hadn’t led him astray so far. But as quickly as he had come, he was gone.__

__The bathroom felt emptier somehow without the younger’s presence, and Daniel felt odd being so _alone_ in the house. He brought up the ring to his face again, watching the way the blue gem caught the light in the bathroom. _ _

__Maybe this house was more trouble than it was worth._ _

__**( ~ * ~ )** _ _

__That same weekend, Daniel found himself at the local library._ _

__He finally had internet access, which was a relief like no other. He checked his email, downloaded some new music to his phone, and texted his friends while seated in one of the plush chairs between the stacks.  
But that, in reality, was not why he was there._ _

__He had gone to the library to research the manor. Luckily, it had always been in his family’s name, so it wasn’t too hard to request the records. After he’d been given an admittedly heavy box, he had sat back at one of the computers and typed “Kang Manor” into the search bar, waiting as the results filtered onto the screen._ _

__For the first hour, it had been an admitted dead end. He had sifted through countless shifty sites, all of them containing none of the information he needed. He was just ready to give up, when the librarian, a sweet older woman who reminded Daniel of his own mother, suggested Daniel try the local newspaper’s website, as they had all of their issues transcribed online._ _

__From there he sifted through the articles, looking back to when the first journal entry Seonho had made had been made. He continued to look back, hoping to find any information on the family, when he found an article tucked into a side column of the front page of a newspaper._ _

___“ ** _HWANG FAMILY MOVES INTO KANG ESTATE_**_  
January 5th, 1839 _  
Earlier this month, Hwang Soojung and her three sons, Hwang Guanlin, 2, Hwang Seonho, 1, and Hwang Minhyun, 12, moved into the famed Kang Estate after a business deal with Kang Sejun was finally made between the two companies. The Hwang Corporation, now headed by Miss Soojung after the passing of her husband, promises to bring massive economic benefit to the community and the Kang Corporation as well._ " 

__Daniel scrolled up to the small photo attached to the article. It was yellowed with time, the ink creating oddly shaped blotches on the paper. There was a woman standing in front of the manor, a white gown around her slim frame as she held a child in her arms, presumably the younger, Seonho. She had flowing dark hair, and her smile as she looked into the camera was almost contagious. Beside her stood Minhyun; just looking at him sent a shiver down Daniel’s spine. He was staring into the camera with a blank expression, Guanlin’s hand held tightly in his own. He was about up to his mother’s shoulder in terms of height and dressed in a dark suit that matched his dark hair framing his thin face. Next to him was Guanlin, a small smile spread across his young features as he held onto his brother’s hand with his own. Daniel shook his head, no child should have to die the way the did. He added the image and article to a folder on the computer and moved on, looking now for when the last entry by Seonho was made._ _

__Before he did, however, he found an article on Minhyun._ _

____****" _LOCAL BOY LEAVES TO STUDY IN LONDON_  
March 31st, 1846 _  
Hwang Minhyun, the eldest son of Miss Hwang Soojung, left yesterday night for London, England, to study. He is in training to be the heir to the Hwang Corporation and to maintain their business with the Kang Corporation. Known for his sharp wit and fast learning skills, he is the first of any of the local aristocrats to leave for study abroad, which is no small feat._ " 

__Attached was another photo of Minhyun, this time much older. He looked just as he had when he had entered Daniel’s room, but far more peaceful.The photo was of him boarding a boat, waving to his family as he was ushered onboard by two sailors. In the photo, Seonho and Guanlin were both visible, a small pout on Seonho’s lips as he waved goodbye to his brother. Daniel was almost certain that if the picture was better, he would be able to see tears in his eyes._ _

__Again, the article was moved to the folder, and Daniel continued to browse._ _

____****__  
"TRAGEDY STRIKES HWANG FAMILY, KANG MANOR  
October 16th, 1846 _  
All three Hwang children were found dead Saturday when police arrived at the manor, called in by a concerned neighbor who noted she could see an odd figure hanging in the window of the house. Police found the two youngest, Hwang Guanlin, 8, and Hwang Seonho, 7, dead in their room. It appears the two died due to malnutrition or illness. The eldest son, Hwang Minhyun, was found hanging in his own room. There reportedly was a suicide note, but police declined to share it with the public. Miss Hwang Soojung was the only surviving member of the family found in the manor, and is reported to have gone mad._ " 

__Daniel leaned back in his chair, sighing as he closed his eyes and scrubbed his face. So Daehwi had been right, no surprise there. He just wished he hadn’t been, children dying so young was a tragedy no one should bear. It seemed from the way the article was written that Miss Hwang had gone mad with grief, but Daniel knew better. She’d been crazy for much longer than any of the town’s residents knew._ _

__He continued scrolling, the exhaustion creeping into his bones disappearing as he read the next article._ _

____****" _SECOND SUICIDE IN 15 YEARS AT KANG MANOR_  
December 14th, 1863 _  
Yesterday the second suicide victim in 15 years was found at Kang Manor. Lee Daehwi, 16, was found by his aide after escaping into the manor garden with a knife, effectively ending his life. It was reported that Lee suffered from acute mental illness and was able to escape his aide by climbing out his second-story window while she was using the restroom._ " 

__He felt his eyes widen the more he read, shaking his head in disbelief. Daehwi looked so _normal_ , how had he been capable of that? Daniel knew back then mental health wasn’t taken as seriously as it was now, so he took it with a grain of salt, but he still felt unsettled by the article. It didn’t even say why he had done it, just that he was ill. There was no mention of a note, of delusions, depression, anything that would indicate why Daehwi would do such a thing._ _

__Once again, mind whirling, Daniel moved the file into his ever-growing folder and kept scrolling. From there on out he found nothing about the manor, no deaths, no new families, nothing. Daniel’s parents had told him the last family to live there had been in the 1950s, but it seemed as if the whole manor had just disappeared, or at least, any mention of it had. At the very least, Daniel found it incredibly suspicious. What about the other ghost that had been with Daehwi in the library? And Daehwi had mentioned multiple bad spirits when he had given Daniel the ring, so what was being hidden from him?_ _

__Daniel supposed he would have to find it himself._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i do not know what minhyun's mother's name is so i just put in a random one, please don't take my word for it!
> 
> also, the stone in daniel's ring is a blue zircon! its daniel's birthstone and aids in spiritual growth and wisdom, and is said to help people find beauty and peace.


	5. rose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **if you want my heart, you need to take my pain too**   
>  **because you will be pricked by my thorns someday**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warnings in this chapter for suicide, abuse, and general angst

After he finished lugging the box of documents up the stairs into his room, Daniel decided to start with the police reports. He wanted to know more about the deaths in the house and how or why they happened. 

He began with the first report, the tab on the manila folder reading “HWANG INCIDENT” in smudged, faded ink. As he opened the folder, dust flung into the air around him, and he grimaced as the gray particles settled like snow on his dark bedsheets. He made a mental note to bring a vacuum, or a feather duster at the least the next time he opened one of these.

From what Daniel could glean from the report, Seonho and Guanlin had been locked in their room, and according to the coroner’s report, died of the flu. Their tiny immune systems had been too weak to fight it, and without food or medical care, they had never stood a chance. 

Also according to the report, Minhyun had hung himself from the suspended light in his room, a note by his feet. Apparently, he had felt as if he had failed to protect his little brothers and should have seen his mother’s madness sooner. Daniel’s heart ached for him, he had no idea how he would cope if his siblings were killed in such a manner, or killed at all.

The report also stated Miss Hwang had been unintelligible when they had picked her up, ranting and raving in the debilitated house as they tried to ask her questions. As she was taken out of the house, apparently she had lost it, becoming animalistic and attacking officers that tried to pull her outside. Eventually, with the help of three officers, she was taken from the house, and apparently spent the rest of her life in a mental institution.

Daniel sighed, putting the folder back together and setting it carefully on the nightstand next to his bed. He took a moment to collect himself, tears pricking at his eyes as he clutched his sheets. It wasn’t _fair_ that two children had to die, it wasn’t _fair_ that their brother had hung himself because of his grief and their mother got off scot-free. He felt the tears drip down his face and onto the bedspread, hearing them land with dull taps. His shoulders shook softly, his hands grasping the bedsheets under him as he stared at the growing wet patch beneath his eyes. 

Daniel almost jumped out of his skin when his door opened, a slow creak that sent a chill down his spine. He screamed when he felt two objects hit him full force, crashing into his chest and then fall to the bed with two soft thuds. However, the fear quickly dissipated as he saw what the objects were.

A stuffed rabbit and a stuffed bear. 

Attached to the bow on the rabbit was a note that read “Cheer up Daniel-hyung! We ~~luve~~ love you!”

Daniel found himself smiling despite himself, calling out a quiet “Thank you, I love you both too,” into the seemingly empty hallway. 

**( ~ * ~ )**

It took a few days before Daniel returned to the files, still shaken up from reading that of the Hwang family. In that time he had just explored the house, working on the areas where the wood was too dilapidated or the fusing too burnt out. He had stopped back in town, buying Seonho and Guanlin some markers, crayons, paper (because they’d run out of wall space _eventually_ ), some new toys including some cars, two stuffed elephants, and two inflatable colorful balls. Some days he would be greeted with the sight of a ball bounding towards him, or an elephant careening across the hall. He’d wake up to small drawings left outside his door or a little note with the children’s scrawl across it. 

True to Daehwi’s word, Daniel hadn't encountered Minhyun once since he was given the ring, which was a huge relief. His lip had almost completely healed over, and his cheek was now a deep shade of yellow with a now smaller bandage covering the cut. 

Now Daniel sat, files spread across his bed, with a small elephant tucked into his side and a car zooming around the floor by the foot of the bed. Seonho and Guanlin had taken to playing in his room at any given hour, which Daniel found cute, but far less so when he was trying to sleep. He was currently debating between two files, one reading “HA INCIDENT” and the other “PARK INCIDENT”. They had been the first two he had seen when he had re-opened the box, and they had piqued his curiosity as he hadn’t seen either of these names in the newspaper. Ultimately, he settled on the Park file, sneezing as the dust from the folder coated his nose, much to Guanlin and Seonho’s glee.

**_PARK INCIDENT_** __  
DATE: June 14th, 1920  
COMPLAINANT: Neighbor  
CRIME: n/a  
VICTIM(S): Park Jihoon, 19  
DESCRIPTION: Victim found in 3rd-floor room dead, an apparent accident. It appears he tripped and split his head. 

Daniel blinked rapid fire, his confusion growing. Was there no investigation? Was he the only one in the house? How was there a victim if there was no crime? He decided to look to the coroner’s report for more answers but just had more questions. It read that he had multiple untreated spiral fractures on his wrists and arms, and abrasions to his throat when he had died, indicating he had also been strangled. How was there no crime? 

Daniel pulled out his laptop (the wifi had finally been hooked up, thank _god_ )and searched the boy’s name in the newspaper website, eventually finding a brief obituary for him in the back pages. It was only a few sentences, nothing indicating how he had died or who had written it, just a small piece on how it was a tragedy he had died so young. Daniel examined his picture, it appeared to be one from his school as he was in a uniform of some sort. He had dark hair (Oh what Daniel wouldn't do to have these newspapers be in color) and small eyes that twinkled mischievously in the flash of the camera. His lips were round and plump, with cheeks to match. 

After a while of staring at the boy’s picture, Daniel closed his laptop, exhausted from his day. As he snuggled deep beneath his covers, the lull of Guanlin’s car skating across the floor and Seonho’s quiet humming coaxing him to sleep, he thought of round cheeks and dainty features. 

_What happened to you?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay double update! this chapter ended up being too long so i had to split it into two, but i really like how it turned out. i might update again later this weekend if i can find the time, and dont worry! your neilwink is coming soon, i just needed to build up the plot and characters a bit more~


	6. fantasy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **i made a wish under the bloodshot sky**   
>  **that this would all be a dream when i open my eyes**

Daniel awoke to something, or rather _someone_ poking his face. He rolled over in his bed, assuming it was just Guanlin or Seonho that had poked him before the stark realization hit him.

The hand was _warm_.

Daniel shot up in his bed, eyes flying open only to be greeted with the sight of Yoon Jisung, his number one hyung and now also number one on his shit list, doubling over in laughter.

“Hyung,” Daniel groaned, flopping back down onto his bed, hand resting over his still racing heart. “You scared the living shit out of me.”

“I’m sorry Daniel-ah,” Jisung said, still wiping tears from the corners of his eyes with his sleeve. “It was an opportunity I just couldn’t pass up.”

“How the hell did you even get in here?”

Jisung rolled his eyes, standing up from where he was crouched on Daniel’s floor and flopping onto the bed beside him. “You really need to get a new place for your hide-a-key, Niel-ah,” He said, a shit-eating grin painting his face. “You’ve been hiding it under a rock since middle school.”

Daniel groaned again, rolling over away from Jisung. It was _way_ too early for this. 

“Why are you even here?” He moaned, shoving his face into his pillow to hide from the borderline offensive sunlight streaming through his blinds.

“Daniel, you haven’t called in like, a week, and I was in the area. Is it a crime to want to visit my favorite son?” Jisung asked, rolling over on top of Daniel, causing the latter to let out a wheeze of pain. 

“Get _off_ ,” Daniel wheezed, pushing himself up so Jisung rolled up off of him, and promptly onto the floor.

"Niel-ah,” The older whined, hand rubbing his backside where he had fallen. “That _hurt,_ ”

“Well maybe you should have thought about that before you snuck into my house and tackled me with your fatass,” Daniel retorted playfully, sticking his tongue out before hurling a pillow at Jisung. 

“Hey! Is that any way to talk to your hyung?!”

**( ~ * ~ )**

An hour later, the two found themselves in Daniel’s kitchen, Daniel standing over a pot of ramen as Jisung sat on the counter, legs dangling in front of his as he recanted Woojin and Jinyoung’s latest antics. 

“And then this little monster had the _nerve_ to tell me I wasn’t his mother! Like after everything I’ve done for him,” He said, throwing up his arms in exasperation as Daniel chuckled, looking back to the pot on the stove. 

“Like, it isn’t _my_ fault that trying to microwave an _entire cake_ is a bad idea! I’m not the cake police,” He continued, and Daniel nodded in agreement, a comfortable silence falling over the two.

“Hey, what’s this?” Jisung asked, and Daniel felt his blood run cold as Jisung picked up a blue toy car, more specifically _Seonho’s_ car.

“It’s uh-“ Daniel’s eyes shifted around the kitchen, trying to come up with an excuse on the fly. “It’s my nephew’s. He came over for a visit,” He lied, not looking up to meet Jisung’s eyes. He knew the older didn’t buy it, he always knew when Daniel was lying.

“Dude,” Jisung said, a smile stretching at the corners of his lips. “I won’t judge you if you’re like- into toy cars or whatever, everyone was their thing yanno?” He said, and for a brief moment, Daniel considered using that excuse.

Until the car flew out of Jisung’s hand and across the room.

On reflex, Daniel found himself yelling “Seonho, be nice!” like he often did when the younger took Guanlin’s toys.

“ _Excuse me?!_ ” Jisung yelled, scrambling to his feet from his place on the counter. “How the hell did that car just fly all the fucking way,” He gestured wildly to the corner. “Over there?!”

“Maybe it was just a draft hyung,” Daniel offered up weakly, but he could tell he was losing this battle, and _fast._

“Draft my _ass_ , Kang Daniel!” He retorted, eyes still fixed on the car. “There’s no way a draft can take something that far, let alone make it fucking move like th- WHAT THE FUCK-“ 

The car had begun to move in anxious circles around Daniel’s feet, and he felt the chill of tiny ghostly palms clutching at the leg of his pajama pants. 

“Hyung,” Daniel pleaded. “Please just calm down,”

“For the love of all that is holy Kang Daniel I will not calm down! You’re acting like all of this is _normal,_ you even referred to it by _name!_ ” He yelled, and Daniel felt the tiny hands clutch tighter to his pant leg, the car moving faster at his feet. 

“Hyung please,” He repeated, resting his hand on top of the semi-solid chill of Guanlin’s head as Seonho’s car sped around. “I’ll explain everything, just please _calm down,_ ” 

“Fine,” Jisung replied, his eyes still fixed on where Daniel’s hand rested on the boy’s invisible head. “But only if you tell me what the _hell_ is going on here.”

**( ~ * ~ )**

“So you’re telling me,” Jisung said, his eyes darting warily around the library where they both sat, breakfast long forgotten. “That your parents sent you to live in a haunted house with three kids, a psycho demon, and god knows how many other spirits, and your _cool_ with it?”

Daniel laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. “Well, not exactly,” Jisung’s eyes locked on to him, an accusatory look filling them as Daniel put out his hands. “But! So far this ring _has_ worked,” He turned his hand over so the gem was visible, waving it at Jisung. “And Guanlin and Seonho are sweethearts. Yeah taking care of them is a bit of a pain sometimes, but c’mon,” He said, lowering his voice. He had sent the siblings to play in their own room, but was still afraid of the two hearing their conversation. 

“They were left alone for god knows how long, and I’m the first person to actually interact with them,” Daniel looked down to the bedspread, his eyes filling with sadness as he thought of leaving the two children behind. “Besides, they died so horribly Jisung, how am I supposed to just leave them?”

Jisung looked at him like he had grown three heads, blinking rapid fire before deadpanning “Are you fucking insane, Kang Daniel?”

“I’m not!” Daniel whined. “Besides, I wasn’t to figure out what happened here, and if there are other spirits who need help!”

Jisung only looked at him with more concern, before he hung his head and sighed.

“I’m not going to be able to move you on this, am I, Daniel?”

“Not a chance.”

“Then promise me this,” Jisung said, his eyes filling with seriousness. “You remember my aunt?”

“The one I said was batshit crazy? Yeah.”

“Have her come here and take a look at the house, okay? Let her get a feel for the place. Seriously, Daniel, I’m concerned for you,” Th frown on Jisung’s face and the motherly expression had Daniel cracking in seconds, regardless of if he really _did_ think she was batshit crazy.

**( ~ * ~ )**

Daniel opened the door to Jisung’s aunt on a brisk Sunday morning, the woman breezing inside, all tinkling jewelry and vibrant loose purple clothing.

“Kang Daniel, I presume,” The woman said, and Daniel nodded, a bit shell-shocked. “My nephew informed me of your little uh, _issue_ and I’m here to do a reading on the house,” She looked around, seemingly staring at nothing. 

“O-okay?” He said, not really sure how to interpret the woman and her eccentricities. 

“Mind showing me around?” She said, throwing a smile over her shoulder that reminded him _scarily_ of Jisung’s.

As they walked through the lower level, she ran her hand over the walls, eyes going in and out of focus as they approached various rooms. She walked directly past the library, not even sparing the room a second glance. However, when they came to the junction between the billiard and dining rooms, she took in a sharp gasp, eyes going blank as they darted between both rooms. 

“What, what is it?” Daniel asked, hand hovering over her shoulder. 

“Oh no,” She muttered. “Oh no no,” Her eyes fixated on the billiard room, her thin frame beginning to shake.

“What?” He said again, planting his hand on her shoulder this time. “Are you okay? What is it?”

She shook her head, the blank look still filling her eyes as she gasped “Upstairs, the third-floor bedroom, go.” Daniel furrowed his eyebrows together in confusion before she gasped again, eyes widening as her pupils turned to the size of pinpricks. Daniel grabbed her wrist, ushering her as gently as he could up the stairs to the desolate third-floor bedroom. The further the pair got from the billiard, the calmer she got, her eyes slowly coming back into focus and her breathing slowing as they walked up the stairs. 

When Daniel opened the door to the third-floor room, she was almost fully lucid, the faraway look from when she had walked through the rest of the house returning. 

“I know you’re here.”

Her voice was surprisingly calm, but seemed all too loud in the empty room. Her eyes fixated on the corner of the room, her arm outstretched.

“I won’t hurt you, okay? Just please come out.”

Purple tendrils began to work their way from her body, causing Daniel to jump back, startled, before he realized they were working their way into the walls. They turned an odd shade of purple, almost as if they themselves had been bruised. The energy of the room changed, a sense of fear that was not his own creeping into Daniel’s bones. 

“Come on,” She said again, walking a step closer before a figure slowly began to materialize in the corner of the room. His face wasn’t visible, but he was wearing a school uniform, curled tightly into a ball.

“Leave me alone,” The voice called out weakly, his own fuchsia tendrils fighting the darker purple ones enclosing around his small frame.

“I won’t hurt you,” The psychic repeated, taking another step towards the shaking boy. 

“Go away, please!” The boy pleaded, lifting his head to reveal his tearstained face. He had plump cheeks and lips, his eyes red and shining with tears. His brown hair clung to his wet face, the tears continuing to fall. 

That’s when it hit Daniel where he’d seen the boy.

“J-Jihoon?” He asked hesitantly, feeling his own voice lodge in his throat. The boy’s head whipped up as he looked at Daniel with wide eyes, hands fisting his jacket tightly as tears continued to spill from his eyes. 

“Park Jihoon?” Daniel asked, a little louder this time before he saw the boy begin to squirm deeper into his corner, his hands covering his face again. 

“No no no,” The boy said, and Daniel shrunk back, his own hands clenching as the psychic took a step closer to the boy. 

“How do you know my name?!” The boy asked, his voice getting louder and more desperate. 

“Jihoo-“

“No, leave me _**alone!**_ ” The boy yelled, pushing impossibly further back into the corner. 

“Leave me alone leave me alone _leavemealoneleavemealoneleavemealone!_ ” He yelled, his hands covering his ears as his voice raised more and more. Daniel flinched, he hadn’t meant to upset the boy at all, just try and connect with him. 

“ ** _GET OUT!_** ” He yelled, and before Daniel knew what had happened, his world went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another long one, oops! i promise i wont leave you guys hanging for too long~


	7. jelly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **even if i scream like crazy**   
>  **you can’t hear it**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry i didn't update this weekend! school chose just then to start kicking my ass ( -_-; ) but i'm back now~

Daniel awoke to Jisung’s aunt sitting on one of the couches in the library, sipping tea out of one of his mugs while staring him down intently. 

“What happened?” He grumbled, trying his best to ignore the pounding in his head. 

“You passed out,” She said bluntly, her spoon tinkling against the side of her cup as she stirred in a packet of sugar. “Ghosts can make humans do that when they get too distressed.”

“But why?” Daniel asked as he let his head flop back onto the pillow under him. That seemed to be all he was asking lately, _why why why_. 

“Well I don’t know the exact reasoning for why they make up pass out, but as for why _you_ specifically passed out, I think it was obvious that saying the ghost’s name was a big no-no.”

Daniel stared up at the ceiling, eyes fixing onto the lightbulbs on the chandelier above him. He hadn’t meant to upset Jihoon, he really hadn’t. He just needed to know if it was him, what happened to him, hell, Daniel wanted to know _anything_. It seemed like he was captive to the house’s secrets just as much the ghosts were captive to the house itself.

“I didn’t mean to upset him,” Daniel grumbled, fiddling with his fingers out of nerves.

“Hey, I get it,” She replied, offering Daniel a small smile as she took another sip from her cup. “Ghosts are an incredibly fickle and tricky bunch, I can’t say the same hasn’t happened to me. There’s really no way to really predict how they’ll act when you draw them out into the open like that.”

“Why did you? Draw him out I mean,” Daniel asked, throwing the woman a curious glance as the bracelets on her wrists clinked together with the movement of her spoon swirling yet another packet of sugar into her cup. 

“Well,” She said, setting her cup down as a serious look crossed her face. I could sense a malevolent spirit in the house. It’s in the billiard room, which I’m sure you’ve noticed,” Daniel nodded in agreement before she continued, he’d never felt quite safe in that room since he’d moved in. “But that I was less concerned about that. Those spirits take time and a lot of effort to get away from, and for now it seems to be confined to the billiard room,” Daniel nodded again, grimacing at the thought of a malevolent, possibly _demonic_ spirit in his house. 

“But I sensed something horrible in the kitchen. Sometimes I get flashes of what happened to spirits before death,” She shook her head, eyes shutting in an almost mournful manner. “And something horrible happened there.”

“What happened?” Daniel asked, only to be greeted with a look that screamed ‘I was _getting_ to that’.

“Well I can’t tell exactly what happened there, but ghost boy, Jihoon, something happened to him,” She shook her head again, grimacing. “I got the sense someone was chasing him. I head screaming and-“ Her eyes glazed over with a faraway look as she recalled the memory, a frown pulling at her lips. “I got a feeling about that room,” She looked at Daniel, a mournful look in her eyes. “That’s why I had you lead me there. I thought it’d be simple, lure him out to manifest and guide him to the light y’know?”

No, Daniel didn’t know, but he nodded anyway.

“But there’s something he’s more scared of, and I think it’s the other presence in this house,” She revealed, and Daniel felt his blood run cold. “It’s binding him here, binding all of them here,” She pointed to the corner of the library casually, stirring her tea with her free hand. “Including him,”

Daniel whipped around, eyes searching for whoever she was pointing at. But alas, all he was met with was an empty corner. He eyed her suspiciously, gaze narrowing.

“Who?”

“Oh you know,” She said vaguely, making Daniel sigh. “He’s wearing a blue flowy shirt and white pants, about 170 cm,” She paused, squinting. “Says his name’s uh- Lee Daehwi?” Daniel perked up at the name, sending a small smile to the corner of the library. “I take it you two are already acquainted,”

“Uh- yeah,” Daniel said, scratching his neck sheepishly. “It’s kind of a long story,”

“Well it’s good I have time.”

**( ~ * ~ )**

“So that’s why he was fussing over you,” The psychic laughed, throwing her head back in her chair. “He was all over you while you were knocked out, I was wondering why the hell he was so concerned, although it isn’t unusual for spirits to gain a one-sided connection with the living,” Her eyes turned serious again as she turned back to Daniel. “But it is interesting how you were able to enter limbo, normally only spirits can only go there. It’s kind of like a gray area between the world of the living and the dead, normally only accessible by the dead,” She frowned again, her eyes fixing on the ground in front of her. 

“Do you have salt in your kitchen, Daniel?”

“Yeah, why?”

**( ~ * ~ )**

After Jisung’s aunt (Eunkyung, he had found her name was) had left, Daniel found himself all the more uneasy in the house. The thing he most decidedly disliked about the ghosts living in his house (Aside from the whole _evil demon thing_ ) was their seemingly perpetual invisibility. Just this once, he’d like to see where the ghosts were and know at least the general area they were in. It was unsettling, living in perpetual wariness of something that try as he might, Daniel could not see.

Eunkyung had left him with various charms, teaching him where to place what. There was a charm hanging from his doorknob that smelled suspiciously like sage and a necklace that had a shimmering blue gem matching the one on his finger around his neck. She had warned him against removing them, a serious look in her eyes that had sent a shiver up his spine when she had fastened the pendant around his neck. 

Now, as he sat with his arm outstretched in front of him, Daniel felt his world begin to change. 

The world seemed to go out of focus, his eyes straining as they darted around the room, panic surging through his veins. Was this another trick by the spirits? Had Minhyun managed to somehow get to him? The books lining the shelves around him began to warp, changing in size, shape, and color before his eyes. The couch beneath him shifted across the room, throwing him out of the plush corduroy in favor of the floor. He heard what sounded like floorboards creaking beneath thousands of footsteps, countless voices filling his head as snippets of conversations passed his ears like a whirlwind. The voices swirled and filled his ears, shrill and piercing and deep and soothing all at once. Daniel didn’t realize the one voice above all of the others he heard, the one cutting through the noise with a pained scream, was his own.

It wasn’t until he felt a hand shaking his shoulder and a voice pleading with him that Daniel realized he had curled himself tight into a ball in the center of the room, his hands clamped over his ears and his face wet with tears. 

“Daniel! Daniel-hyung!” He heard a familiar voice (Daehwi’s, thank god) calling him back into the present, cold hands gently prying Daniel’s own from his face as the younger (Was he technically even that? The boy had been alive longer than his grandparents, Daniel thought fleetingly) worriedly crouched beside him, taking his hand in his own.

“Daniel oh my god I’m so so sorry- I have no idea what happened I didn’t know you’d react that way to limbo I’m so sorry- I-I’m so stupid I should have waited until you were asleep I-“

“Yah, Daehwi, slow down, you’re scaring the poor guy,” a voice sounded from somewhere in the library, making Daniel flinch further into himself. 

“Shut _up_ Jaehwan,” Daehwi hissed through what Daniel assumed to be clenched teeth as the smaller boy gently brushed his hair out of his face, his cold fingers calming against Daniel’s burning skin. They sat like that for a while, Daehwi with a calming hand on Daniel’s temples as the other boy’s heart slowly returned to a normal rate and the ringing in his ears dissipated. 

“Daniel-hyung, can you stand?” He asked after a while, and Daniel nodded slowly as he stood up, his legs shaking as he hoisted himself onto his feet. Daehwi guided him to a plush chair which he promptly sank into like it was the only thing that could hold him up. Daehwi sat in the chair across from Daniel, his eyes downcast as he fiddled with his fingers. 

“I’m sorry for that,” He said, shifting in his chair. “I didn’t mean for that to happen, really. I wanted to bring you into limbo because I sensed-“ He hesitated, and Daniel weakly quirked up an eyebrow. “I sensed that Minhyun was especially upset after you brought in Eunkyung and even though I trust her charms to keep you safe I can’t help but worry with someone like him,“ He hesitated once again, breathing in deeply. “I think It’s time I told you what’s going on here.”


	8. nightmare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **with those sharp lips you bite,**   
>  **and in the broken mirror i change**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> double update again! also warnings for mentioned/implied suicide and abuse in this chapter.

Daniel perked up, shaking his previous tiredness off in favor of listening to what Daehwi had to say. He needed answers about the house, and he needed them _now._ He said nothing, he didn’t completely trust his voice, so he just gave Daehwi an encouraging nod, a small smile tugging at the side of his mouth. 

“So,” The smaller began, his hands anxiously gripping the fabric of his pants beneath his fingertips. “I know you know about Seonho and Guanlin, but I don’t think you know the whole story about their mother. I know the story better than anyone here, even Minhyun. My father treated her for her pregnancy with Seonho and through… What came after,” A mournful smile stretched across Daehwi’s lips, the boy tracing the detailing of the chair as the candles from the chandelier overhead flickered. “Miss Hwang was a beautiful woman, she really was. She loved Seonho and Guanlin like no one else, and even though Guanlin was adopted, she never acted like he was anything but blood. When Seonho came along, she was overjoyed. But Soojung had never been the most stable woman you see, and she got a very bad case of post-partum depression after Seonho was born. Of course, back then, no one batted an eyelash at mental illness, so she went untreated for a very long time,” Daniel closed his eyes, trying to absorb all the information at once.

“She was stable after a while, but when Minhyun left for university, she felt like she’d been abandoned by her own son. She spiraled downwards after that, eventually firing her staff and shutting herself, Seonho, and Guanlin inside the house at all times except for when she needed to buy food,” Daehwi smiled sadly as he spoke, hugging a pillow to his side. “She became obsessed with replacing Minhyun, insisting she could build a ‘perfect’ family and she tried to make Seonho and Guanlin ‘perfect’ too,” Daehwi’s eyes shone with tears, and Daniel felt as if he had been punched in the stomach by the statement. No children were perfect, hell, no human was perfect. How could that sick woman have taken her fantasies out on her own children?

“Eventually they died, but no one could tell as no one saw them anymore. They were only found weeks later when Minhyun finally returned from university,” a single tear slipped down Daehwi’s cheek, and Daniel felt his own eyes burn with unshed tears. “He felt like he’d failed his little brothers, it was too much for him to see his own mother so deteriorated and his brothers dead. He’d loved Seonho and Guanlin more than almost anything, and he ended up… He ended up hanging himself out his window,” Daehwi’s eyes glassed over, and Daniel fought the brotherly urge to wipe the tear away.

“They, of course, discovered Minhyun and were made aware of Miss Hwang’s condition. When they took her away she had screamed and writhed and tried to stay in the house at any cost. It took so many officers just to get her out,” Daehwi shivered, closing his eyes. “My father told me she never stopped talking about the house, that even when she was institutionalized, she never stopped talking about it.” 

Daniel’s heart ached for Minhyun, and he no longer feared the man as he once had before. The man had been through incomparable pain, and Daniel had no idea what he would have done had it been him. 

“Guanlin, Seonho, and Minhyun are stuck here for obvious reasons,” Daehwi continued, and he hesitated, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth before continuing. “But Miss Hwang… She’s here because she can’t let go of the house and she’s still obsessed with creating the perfect family, more specifically, the perfect sons,”

“Why are you here?” Daniel blurted out, and he mentally slapped himself as Daehwi visibly flinched. “I’m sorry I-“

“No no hyung, it’s fine,” Daehwi reassured him, regaining his composure. “I just didn’t expect that, but I suppose I should have. I mean, you do have the files,” Daehwi grimaced, and it was Daniel’s turn to flinch.

“I’m sorry, I overstepped my boundaries, I shouldn’t have gotten those files,” He apologized, and once again Daehwi shook his head.

“I would have done the same Hyung, okay?” He said, flashing him a smile that seemed so genuine, Daniel couldn’t help but relax. Daehwi closed his eyes, sucking in a breath before launching into his own story.

“I moved into this house with my mother and father when I was very young, even though Father knew the house’s past, we were short on money and due to the tragedy, the house was cheap enough for us to easily afford. Everything was okay for a long time, my mother just thought it was odd I had imaginary friends, and especially that they were named Seonho and Guanlin, but my father just chalked it up to my overactive imagination and overhearing him discuss the case with my mother once. But when I got older after my father died-“ Daniel didn’t miss how Daehwi choked up as he said the words, his eyes filling with big tears threatening to spill over, and Daniel once again fought off the urge to pick up the little ghost boy and wrap him up in a crushing bear hug.

“After he died I started lashing out, and one day I punched a maid,” Daehwi looked down at his hands, guilt written all over his face. “So mother took away my ring, the same one you’re wearing,” The metal now felt even heavier than it originally had on Daniel’s finger, the ring like a hot vice around the appendage. “Because it scratched the maid’s cheek and she said she didn’t want anything like that happening again,” A tear slipped down Daehwi’s face, and Daniel shook his head sadly, no kid should have to be put through that type of thing.

“I didn’t know it at the time, but the ring was the only thing protecting me from Miss Hwang, and soon I was seeing her everywhere. She was in my bedroom, watching me as I slept, in the dining room when I took my meals, in the billiard room when I had my lessons, she was everywhere, but no one else could see her. So, my mother, she got me an aide who followed me around to make sure I wasn’t hurting myself or starting fights. Her name was Somi, and she was one of the only people who believed in me. But one day-“ Daehwi choked, his tears rolling down his face. “One day it was too much. Miss Hwang wouldn’t stop screaming and all I could think was that there was no way to get away from her. Somi had left a letter opener on the desk so I took it and ran into the garden and-“ Daewhi was choked off with sobs, his small frame wracked with tremors as he sat in the armchair, looking impossibly small. 

Daniel, his feet moving of his own accord, walked over to Daehwi, taking the younger’s hand in his own as he just stood there, letting Daehwi let out the emotions he had stored up for so long. Once the younger calmed, he sat back up, straightening his back and wiping his tears. “What I also didn’t realize was that Miss Hwang, she _wanted_ me to die, she wanted me to be stuck here with her. She wants a collection of ‘perfect sons’ so to speak, and she’s been trapping all of us here since,” 

Daniel felt like he’d been punched in the gut, his eyes wide with shock until the other boy, Jaehwan, who Daniel had honestly forgotten was there, leaned back in his chair, flashing them a cheeky grin and saying “Except me, I just tripped and hit my head, dumb way to die, I know. But the bitch trapped me here anyway,” His attempt at lightening the mood worked, a tiny giggle working its way from Daehwi’s mouth and a wry grin from Daniel.

“But why me? Why am I here?”

“Because you need to help us break the curse.”

**( ~ * ~ )**

Two days later and sixty dollars lighter, Daniel stood in Jihoon’s room with what was possibly the most ridiculous purchase he’d ever made.

As Daniel set the ouija board down on the floor and took out the planchette and lit the candles, he felt a wave of apprehension reach over him. Daehwi had assured him it would be safe, that him and Jaehwan would watch over him, but he still couldn’t help but feel anxious. He sat on the floor, the planchette in the center of the board with his finger resting lightly on the tail. He opened the game, voice shaking as he asked if there was anyone with him, and the planchette remained still as a stone.

“Jihoon?” He called hesitantly, and for a moment there was nothing but a deathly silence until the planchette began to shake, moving towards the “YES” emblazoned on the board like there was a small, hesitant, hand pulling it along. 

“A-are- is it you?” Daniel stammered out, and the planchette, while still shaking, remained on the “YES”. An oppressive cold filled the room, and Daniel felt his heart weigh down with feelings of fear that were not his own. 

“If you’re uncomfortable, I’ll leave,”

Daniel pretended he didn’t smile when the planchette had hesitantly moved to for “P-L-E-A-S-E- S-T-A-Y”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments! i lowkey (read: highkey) live off them and try to reply to all of them as fast as i can!


	9. bad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **you wrap around me**   
>  **then you disappear like a dream**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hihi! sorry for the late update but as many of you know, there have been many school shootings in america and after the recent one in parkland, many schools near me have been threatened and so i havent felt well... in the mood to write. but im back now, and hopefully, things will be better. 
> 
> also warning for this chapter for a scene of murder and explicit violence. it's one of the few really dark chapters, so if you aren't comfortable with that, you can skip over the scene as it isnt wholly necessary to understand everything, other than that, enjoy!

“Okay,” Daniel smiled, gazing down at the planchette. “I’ll stay,”

The planchette remained still, but Daniel could tell that Jihoon understood him. He shifted his gaze uncertainly, not sure how to continue. “How old are you, Jihoon?” He asked, opting to stay safe with his questions for the time being. The planchette began to move, a slow gentle tug to the side of the board where the numbers were written, spelling out “1-8” for Daniel to read. He smiled, he was getting somewhere. 

“Eighteen huh? I just turned twenty-one myself. My friend, Woojin, he’s the same age as you,” Daniel rambled, and he almost slapped himself with the hand that wasn’t holding the planchette because _normal people don’t talk to ghosts about their best friends, Kang Choding._

“Um, do you have any pets?” He cringed internally, because yes, he _totally needed to ask the dead kid about his damn pets._ But to his surprise, the planchette began to move, causing a hesitant smile to break out on Daniel’s face. 

“D-O-G”

“Really?” He asked, trying to keep the excited lilt out of his voice. “I used to have a cat before I moved here, but now he lives with my other friend,” He smiled wistfully, hoping Jisung was taking care of the feline well.

“N-A-M-E-?” 

Daniel was startled, to say the least. He had barely expected the ghost to answer his questions, let alone ask Daniel some of his own. 

“His name is Haknyeon, he’s great,” Daniel smiled, happy Jihoon was warming up to him. 

But he had to start getting to why he was really there. He was hesitant to possibly destroy whatever small repertoire he had with the boy then, remembering how poorly the other handled being cornered. It wasn’t like Daniel wanted answers just for himself, he wanted answers for everyone trapped in the house, God knows they deserved it.

“Jihoon-“ He said, hesitating as he felt the words lodge in his chest. “How did you die?”

For once the planchette remained stone still, seeming to sink down into the board from there Daniel’s hand rested on it. The temperature of the room sunk by what Daniel assumed must have been at _least_ a few degrees, and suddenly he felt as if he was going to regret this.

Oh well, no turning back now.

The planchette began to move again, slow and shaky, unlike the smooth, yet hesitant tugs from before. 

“H-I-T”

“Hit?” Daniel frowned, his brows furrowing. The police report had said it had been an accident, that Jihoon had fallen. Yet the incompleteness of the report made him question if it was credible to cite in the first place. “Who hit you, Jihoon?”

Once again, the temperature dipped, the aura in the room becoming heavier and the air becoming thick with something Daniel couldn’t quite place, He waited for several minutes, goose bumps rising on his flesh as he sat. He could feel Jihoon was there, and he wanted answers before the other ran off. 

His waiting paid off as the planchette began to move again, the same shaky movements before pulling Daniel to the letters. 

“F-A-T-H-E-R”

“Father? J-Jihoon, did your father kill you?”

All at once, Daniel’s mind was filled with sadness that wasn’t his own, cold shards of ice probing into his brain as his lungs filled with water. He was drowning, fear and betrayal flooding his senses as he felt tears come to his eyes. His lungs felt flooded yet they were burning for air, his feet screaming as he tripped up a flight of stairs, his ears rang with high pitched screams mingling with the much deeper shouting of another. His eyes burned, his lungs burned, his arms burned, his finger burned, his whole body felt like it was on fire, everything _burned._

And then as quickly as it began, it was over. 

Daniel gasped for air, blinking away the hot tears gathered in his eyes that slipped down his cheeks as his chest heaved up and down. His whole body shook as the emotions drained out of him, the overstimulation leaving him feeling oddly empty. 

He hadn’t even noticed that the pointer had moved to _Goodbye _.__

__

__Two hours later, Daniel found himself exhausted after a long shower. Bundled up in his blankets he cocooned himself into something resembling a caterpillar and played the latest episode of _Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders_ as he slipped into the world of dreams._ _

__However, when Daniel opened his eyes, instead of a normal dreamscape, he was greeted with a familiar red chair and head of dark blond hair bouncing playfully in the corner of his vision._ _

__“We have _got_ to stop meeting like this, Daniel-hyung,”_ _

__**( ~ * ~ )** _ _

__Jihoon sat on the floor, his fingers placed delicately on the opposite side of the planchette from Daniel’s. He sat opposing the older, his legs crossed underneath him on the aging carpet. He smiled minutely as Daniel rambled on about his cat, not missing the wistful looks he passed as he talked about how he had left him with a friend._ _

__“Jihoon-“ Jihoon could hear the hesitance in Daniel’s voice, could tell he was diving into risky territory, and he felt himself tense up. He was foolish to think the other only wanted to discuss pets and personal trivia, after all, _who the hell buys an ouija board just to be buddy-buddy with a ghost?__ _

__“How did you die?”_ _

__Jihoon felt himself freeze, fear creeping its way like a frost into his bones. He never talked about that to anyone, _anyone_ even Daehwi on the rare occasions the other could find where Jihoon was hiding (or in the even rarer case that Jihoon himself needed company). _ _

__Yet he found his fingers tugging the planchette across the board, jerky and slow as his hands shook._ _

__“H-I-T”_ _

__He didn’t miss how Daniel’s eyebrows furrowed and his eyes widened in shock. He never thought he’d never speak of this to another soul again, yet here he was._ _

__“Who hit you, Jihoon?”_ _

__Jihoon froze again, his eyes filling with tears as memories filled his mind again._ _

__“F-A-T-H-E-R”_ _

__“Father? J-Jihoon, did your father kill you?”_ _

Then, the floodgates of his memory opened.

___”JIHOON!” His father roared from the dining room, and Jihoon hunched his shoulders as he tried to make himself look as small as possible, unintimidating, fragile, timid._ _ _

___Like he wasn’t a target._ _ _

___“Jihoonie, come here,” A voice emanated from his father’s body, but it wasn’t his father’s, this time it belonged to a woman. “Jihoonie, come here,” The voice called again, venom lacing its tone now as his father stepped closer to him. “Come to Mommy, okay? It’s okay. We can be a big happy family, okay? You, me, and your precious Papa,” Jihoon’s father’s face pulled up into one of the most sinister grins Jihoon had ever seen, and he felt himself back slowly towards the doorway._ _ _

___“Now now Jihoonie, don’t run away,” The voice said again, his father’s arm slowly extending to show a large blade extending from his hand. “Come be with Mommy okay, just come here, it won’t hurt, Mommy promises,”_ _ _

___Jihoon felt tears well up in his eyes as the figure of his father stalked closer and closer, and Jihoon felt his blood turn to ice as he finally looked into his father’s eyes. They were pitch black, hollow husks of the bright orbs that had nursed Jihoon as a child. They held a malicious glint, and Jihoon felt himself struggle to breathe as he backed away again._ _ _

___“Jihoon,” The voice said, this time stern and slightly threatening. “Come. Here.”_ _ _

___Jihoon ran._ _ _

___He heard a scream of rage from behind him, one that sent the feeling of nails on a chalkboard down his spine as he ran. He felt a hand grab at his wrist, and let loose a scream of his own as he tore his hand free, but not before feeling the cold sting of the metal rip up his forearm, a wet, sticky substance flowing out._ _ _

___Blood._ _ _

___He wrenched his arm away, crying as he ran for the stairs. He didn’t know where he was going or why, just that he needed to get away._ _ _

___He tripped as he scrambled up the stairs, the panting and laughing of what used to be his father trailing hot on his heels as he darted up the second flight. He felt the white-hot fear coursing through his veins, his lungs burning as he threw himself into his room, throwing the deadbolt behind him as he darted under his bed. Not a second later, a slam was at his door, the slab of wood shaking on its frame._ _ _

___“Jihoonie~” The voice called again, and Jihoon resisted the urge to whimper in fear from where he hid under his bed. He lay with his hand clamped across his mouth, hot tears of fear streaking down his cheeks as he stared at the door._ _ _

___“Jihoonie open up. Your papa said it was okay, we can be a family now. I’ll be your new mommy, and you have so many brothers waiting for you now! Open up,”_ _ _

___Jihoon sat, frozen under his bed, his sobs muffled by his hand as he tried to shrink impossibly smaller._ _ _

___“Jihoonie, Mommy doesn’t like to be toyed with,” The voice said, a scratching from what Jihoon presumed to be the knife emanating from the door. “Open. Up.”_ _ _

___Jihoon was still._ _ _

___“PARK JIHOON!” Roared the voice of his father, startling Jihoon out of his stupor, almost making him reach out from his hiding place to open the door on instinct. But before he could, his door began to violently shake as his father thumped against the frame, the creaking and crackling of the wood piercing Jihoon’s eardrums. He waited in silence, his hand muffling his ever-growing sobs as he watched the door collapse in on itself, the figure of his father barreling in and as soon as he saw Jihoon, taking a hold of the boy’s wrist from under the bed, wrenching him out as Jihoon sat, white-hot fear paralyzing him, filling his nose, his heart, his eyes, everywhere._ _ _

___“Mommy doesn’t like that, bad boys don’t run, Jihoon.”_ _ _

___The handle of the knife hit the back of his head._ _ _

___Then darkness._ _ _

__It was only when Jihoon came out of his memory that he saw Daniel, _poor sweet, well-meaning Daniel_ choked up with Jihoon’s own emotions, tears streaming down his face as his head was thrown back, gasps and gurgles escaping his mouth._ _

__Jihoon moved the planchette to “Goodbye”._ _

__He resolved to not talk to Daniel again, for both their sakes._ _

__Even if he was the first person to make Jihoon smile._ _


	10. going crazy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **it pushes up to me like thickening fog**   
>  **cutting off my breath, it’s killing me**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the late update again, but a lot has been going on. if you want a longer explanation, i've included it in the second note, but other than that, i hope you enjoy!

“We have got to stop meeting like this, Daniel-hyung,” 

Daniel groaned as he rolled over, turning to face the smirking boy next to him. He loved Daehwi, he really did, but now all he wanted to do was have a long nap, the last thing he wanted to do was think more.

“Daewhi-ah, why am I here?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” The bow responded, his brows furrowing. “I think it’s because you contacted Jihoon with the ouija board, it’s probably because being close to spirits allows you to travel between worlds easier, but I may be wrong,” The boy clapped his hands together, the confusion erasing itself from his face as he perked up. “But that isn’t what we need to talk about, Hyung,” Daniel groaned, he knew where this was going, and he didn’t like it one bit. 

“I’m impressed you got that much out of Jihoon, he won’t even talk to me when I try to reach out to him. He’s never talked to any of us, let alone shown us how he died.”

Daniel recoiled in shock, his eyebrows shooting into his hairline. Jihoon had shown him how he had _died?_ It didn’t make sense, Jihoon didn’t know him, why would he trust him with something so _personal? ___

__“Of course, I don’t think he really _meant to,_ ” Daehwi continued, either oblivious to or ignoring Daniel’s shock (He couldn’t determine which was worse). “I think it was just his emotions overflowing, as far as I know, he’s never talked about his death to anyone,” Daehwi smiled bitterly, and Daniel couldn’t help but wonder what their story was. “But don’t worry, the plan is coming along nicely.”_ _

__**( ~ * ~ )** _ _

___**Two Days Prior** _ _ _

__“Why am I here?”_ _

__“Because you need to help us break the curse.”_ _

__Daniel stared at Daehwi, dumbfounded as the younger continued to smile, his gaze never faltering or leaving Daniel’s face. This was all too much, moving into a new house (A _haunted_ house, mind you), caring for two undead children, dodging crazed spirits, and now breaking a curse? Maybe this is what parenthood felt like, Daniel mused._ _

__What the hell._ _

__He had nothing to lose._ _

__“Okay, but first, what curse?”_ _

__Daehwi clapped his hands together happily before standing up to gather books from the shelves, flitting from volume to volume before setting the pile down in front of the both of them (Daehwi looked ridiculously like a small child with books stacked up to his eyes, but Daniel would never admit it). The younger pulled out a slimmer book from the stack, opening the cover and placing what now Daniel knew was a photo album between them before pointing at a picture inside._ _

__It was of what Daniel presumed to be the Hwang family, with a teenage Minhyun holding his little brothers’ hands as they walked along the garden path, Seonho clutching onto his older brother’s pant leg as Guanlin walked ahead of them both, presumably dragging the two in excitement. Miss Hwang walked next to them, a smile on her face as she watched her sons. Daniel was struck by how elegant, how _normal_ she looked. She wore a sleeveless white dress, lace draping over her shoulders and a small fabric rose resting in the center of the bodice. Minhyun and his brothers wore suits, leather shoes scuffed with dirt and bowties in disarray as they laughed. The family looked so perfect, so happy, and Daniel’s heart broke the more and more he looked at the photo, feeling almost as if he was intruding on a private family moment. _ _

__“As you know,” Daehwi began, breaking Daniel out of his stupor. “The Hwang sons died in this house, and Miss Hwang haunts the house now. Her spirit has had a long time to fester, and she’s powerful now, far more powerful than Minhyun or me. She’s been…” Daehwi paused before continuing, grimacing and furrowing his brows as he tried to think of words. “Collecting… Boys over the years. She wants the perfect sons, and she’s been trapping us all here for years,” Daehwi pulled another book from the stack, this time a larger purple book with golden writing embossing the sides. “It’s called a residual curse, what she’s put on us. Her spirit is trapped here, so she traps us here with her,” He flipped to a page in the book, large flowy writing entitling the section “Residual Curses” before sliding the volume over to Daniel, the elder leaning over to examine the section._ _

___’Residual curses develop when one spirit, typically malevolent, refuses to leave a house or area. They become so attached to the location that they cannot leave, and project that attachment onto any others that die in the vicinity, hence trapping those spirits as well. Little is known on how to break these curses, other than that the curse’s enactor must be put to rest properly for it to be lifted.’_ _ _

__Daniel looked up from the book, quirking an eyebrow. “But how does this help us if it says they don’t know how to break it?” He asked, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Daehwi smiled again, pulling another large tome out of the stack before plopping it down, flipping through the pages before he began reading._ _

__“Breaking curses, especially those of the residual variety, is especially difficult. Through copious investigation, we have determined that the breaking of a residual curse can be done by the following: First, all parties affected by the curse must be revived. This can be done through living every transfer or corporeal sacrifice,” Daniel felt his blood run cold at that, his eyes darting around. Call him crazy, but he did _not_ think anything involving the words _corporeal sacrifice_ could turn out well. Daehwi, ever observant, noticed, flashing Daniel a comforting smile before soothing him._ _

__“Don’t worry, we won’t need to do that. It’s very archaic, no one has done it in years,” Daniel would be lying if he said he wasn’t still nervous, but he trusted Daehwi._ _

__“Second, the subjects must all denounce their curser, and the reviver(s) must perform a blessing on the affected area. Third, the curser must be drawn out an expelled from the area. Not much is known from beyond then, as all performers of this ritual, while living, do not tend to remember or wish to speak of the end result, although the curse will be lifted.”_ _

__“Okay…” Daniel said after a few moments of silence, looking up at Daehwi. “I’m not going to pretend I understood that all, but I do get the gist of it, but what exactly did it mean by ‘all parties must be revived’?”_ _

__“That,” Daehwi pointed to the section, smiling once again as Daniel looked up in puzzlement. “Means that you have to provide enough energy for the spirits to achieve a living, corporeal form. It’s fairly easy in some aspects, the energy is taken by the ghost and it’s just a simple transfusion, but the road there is more difficult. The ghost must consent to being revived, and also have some sort of connection with their reviver. It typically has to be a somewhat deep emotional connection, because without it the connection the revival becomes unstable as the ghost has nothing tethering them to the living world,”_ _

__“Okay…” Daniel said reproachfully, eyeing Daehwi somewhat nervously. “Then what’s the plan?”_ _

__“Well, what I thought,” the younger began, pulling another photo album from the stack and sliding a picture of the twins towards Daniel. “Was that you would start by reviving Seonho. Guanlin is older and will have an easier time without his brother, but Seonho would be harder to calm until you had enough energy to revive him as well. Since they’re children, they shouldn’t be too hard of a challenge to revive, so it’s best to start off slow,”_ _

__Daniel looked back down at the photo before Daehwi continued, smiling sadly at the two smiling faces that greeted him. It was from what looked to be a birthday party, the two siblings smiling into the camera as Minhyun sat behind Seonho, who had a hat emblazoned with the words ‘Birthday Boy!’ sat atop his head. Guanlin had a smear of frosting across his face, and Daniel tried to ignore the tug in his heart that urged him to reach through the photo and wipe it away._ _

__“Since Seonho and Guanlin have an obvious connection to you, I think it’ll be easy for you to revive them. Next, you should try for Jaehwan, he’ll give you the least trouble. Then go for Sungwoon, if you can find him it’s easy to get close to him. Then Jihoon, he’ll be hardest to get to open up. Last you should try Minhyun and get the siblings to help you out. He’ll listen to them,” Daehwi smiled again, but this time his lips were sealed tightly, his eyes lacking their usual sparkle._ _

__“What about you?”_ _

__Daehwi visibly started at the question, clearly not anticipating Daniel to ask something like that. Daniel felt his heart hurt, how could Daehwi not even plan himself?_ _

__“I’m not important,” Daehwi said with a wave of his hand, his dark blond locks falling into his eyes as he ducked his head. “Besides, you need someone here cheering for you and getting all this information, right?” He smiled again, but it was so empty, so _fake_ that it made Daniel’s heart clench. _ _

__“Daehwi-ah, if we’re doing this, I promise you, I’m getting you out of here too.”_ _

__**( ~ * ~ )** _ _

__That’s how Daniel found himself standing outside Jihoon’s door once more, ancient tomes from the library and ouija board in hand, heavy-hearted and anxious._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry to give a late update for the second week in a row, but thank you for all your kind words and understanding last week. i put this note at the end so you wouldn't have to read my rambling before the actual story, haha. but long story short my school and lots of local schools have been receiving threats of violence/shootings and it's really stressful and leaves me little motivation to write. on top of all that, one of my classmates killed himself this weekend (i didn't know him very well, but it's still sad and disturbing) and it's just... exhausting. i'll try to keep to my update routine as much as i can since writing this provides me some sort of structure in my life right now, but if they're a few days late please forgive me.


	11. stay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **if you’re gonna leave me,**   
>  **i just want you to stay**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me? on time? finally!

Daniel had sat in Jihoon’s room for hours to no avail, even falling asleep with his fingers resting on the planchette as he waited for a reply from the boy. He could _feel_ Jihoon’s presence in the room, but couldn’t place why he wouldn’t speak to him. He had tried drawing the other out with stories, jokes, and promises of food (If ghosts could even eat, Daniel didn’t know) but with no results. 

Eventually, Daniel had given up, dragging himself out of the room before collapsing down onto the bed, feeling two small, invisible figures curling up beside him. He carded his hands through Seonho’s invisible hair as the small boy preened up into his touch, causing Daniel to smile absentmindedly. His mind was still on Jihoon, the small hesitant boy who had revealed so much to him. He knew Jihoon hadn’t meant to show him his death, and Daniel still didn’t understand what happened to him fully. When he saw his eyes, he sometimes saw tiny flashes of what Jihoon had shown him; the angry face of his father, the stairs rising to meet his face as he tripped, the door of his room bursting in through the legs of his bed. 

He raised a hand up to his chest, gently massaging where he still felt the weight of scraps of Jihoon’s fear clinging to him, a grim reminder of what the boy had felt in his final moments. Whenever Daniel tried thinking back to what Jihoon showed him, to remember all he had been shown, a splitting headache attacked him, bringing the weight in his chest up to his throat, panic gripping him like a vice until he decided to stop the flow of memory. 

As he fell into the darkness of sleep, he mused that it might be the reason Jihoon hadn’t spoken to him that day.

**( ~ * ~ )**

Jihoon grimaced as Daniel entered his room, setting the book he had taken from the library (While Daehwi wasn’t there, of course) down onto his bed as he watched the man unfold the ouija board, flipping through pages of a large tome while extracting the planchette from a bag. The man placed his fingers on the planchette and began to spin it on the board, calling out to the other side. Jihoon could feel a chill run up his spine as the veil began to thin, the blankets beneath him feeling more real beneath his fingertips. 

He shivered as Daniel’s voice reached his ears, a hesitant smile on his features.

“Jihoon-ah, are you there?”

Jihoon smiled bitterly, rising up from where he sat to sit across from the other boy, studying his features. It gave him more bravery than he usually had, being invisible to the living. He almost giggled at how focused Daniel looked, his eyebrows furrowed together in concentration at the planchette. He felt bad for not answering Daniel, but the look of confusion on the elder’s face almost made up for it.

Almost.  
As the night progressed, Jihoon watched as Daniel grew more and more frustrated, and more than once found his fingers hesitantly gliding towards the planchette in front of him. His heart almost broke when Daniel leaned forward in slumber, jerking back awake before he could fall onto the board. A small voice in his head echoed that it was his fault, that he was making Daniel sit there and reject him. That if he hadn’t spoken to Daniel in the first place, hadn’t appeared in front of the psychic when she had come, that Daniel wouldn’t worry about him, that the other could live normally as he pleased.

He shook his head, he was doing this _for Daniel._ He thought back to the night where he had shown Daniel his death, to the choked sobs that had left the elders throat as he cried just because Jihoon couldn’t control his emotions. He felt white hot tears prick at his eyes, disappointment licking up his chest as he thought back to how _he_ had made Daniel feel that way, about how _he_ had made him suffer.

He watched as the elder picked up the board, feet dragging across the carpet as he walked out.

And for the first time in a while, Jihoon allowed tears to run down his face. 

**( ~ * ~ )**

Three days after the first attempt of what Daniel now refers to as _The Totally Sane Plan To Get To Know Jihoon_ failed, he sat on his bed, explaining him and Daehwi’s plan to Seonho and Guanlin as the two sat at his feet. He had felt the two perk up in excitement at the prospect of being alive again, but hadn’t missed how Guanlin had withered slightly at the prospect of being separated from his brother. 

The two had taken to talking to Daniel by writing on pieces of paper inside Seonho’s journal, so when Daniel had seen the words “We trust you, it’s okay” appear on the page in shaky writing, he hadn’t even attempted to wipe away his tears.

 

Now he lay on his bed, Seonho next to him with their hands clasped together as Daehwi talked Seonho through the ritual. It was simple, Seonho would take the energy he needed to manifest from Daniel, but Daehwi would tell him when to stop as to not drain him too much. The felt a small tap on his shoulder, Daehwi’s way of asking if he was ready, and with a shaky smile, Daniel nodded.

He felt a strange pull through his body, a tingling energy circulating through him and centering in the hand still clasped with Seonho’s. He felt his brain cloud over, his thoughts slowing more and more as they lay there, Daniel slowly becoming more and more exhausted until he felt the flow abruptly stop, his consciousness snapping back to him as he struggled to open his eyelids.

Next to him lay Seonho.

Living, breathing Seonho.

Daniel felt his heart shudder as he looked at the boy, his eyes opening slowly as he reached out his arms to Daniel, his large brown eyes filling with tears. Ignoring the weariness in his bones, Daniel scooped up the child in his arms, leaning against the wall as he sat with the boy in his lap as he fisted his shirt. He felt tears, _glorious, real, wet, **tears**_ soak through his shirt as Seonho, _his Seonho_ shook in his arms, drawing the boy closer as he cried. His tiny body shook and Daniel found tears prick at his own eyes as his heart clenched, a lump forming in his throat as Seonho cried himself to sleep against his chest, stuttering out “Papa papa papa” through his tears like a mantra.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all for your kind words on my last update, it really means a lot to me. you're all the sweetest, honestly. i love you all so much, gah


	12. your song

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **i’m walking through the white night**   
>  **with cold smoke all around**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> boomerang snatched my wig, so did ipu and the album put me into tears. that is all.

Taking care of a kid, as Daniel had come to discover, was not as easy as originally planned. Especially when said kid hadn’t experienced life in 150 years.

Daniel had been too drained after the ritual to do much but lay with Seonho, the child content to just lay on his chest while babbling nonsense while he cried. Daehwi had warned him that it might be a lot for Seonho emotionally; being alive after so long, but Daniel didn’t mind. He held the child in his arms, cooing in his ear and using what little energy he had left to rub the younger’s back. They had fallen asleep like that, Daniel laying against the wall as Seonho let out tiny hiccups and sobs against his chest.

The next morning, however, Seonho was much more alert. Daniel had awoken to see the boy sitting on the floor, giggling as he and Guanlin drew together on the walls. He watched the two for a while, a smile painting his face as he took in the sight. Seonho with his black hair still tousled from sleep, the pair of old, ratty pajamas he had been revived in still hugging his frame. His eyes shone happily as he giggled and babbled to his brother, a sound Daniel swore if he could bottle and keep forever, he would. 

Eventually, the boys noticed he was awake, and soon Seonho had barreled into his chest, greeting him with a “Papa! You’re awake!” and a smile that Daniel swore could power cities. He had to hold himself back from crying, warmth spreading through his chest as he held Seonho to his chest, relishing in the feeling of the younger’s heartbeat and warmth against his own. 

“Papa,” Seonho giggled, squirming in Daniel’s hold as he loosened his grip. “ ’m hungry,” And Daniel was reminded that okay, yeah, Seonho was alive and needed to do living person things like, y’know, _eat._

That’s how he had found himself in the kitchen, pancake mix somehow goddamn _everywhere_ and Seonho giggling as he played with cars on the counter. It had started out simple enough, Daniel opting to make the child waffles because _come on, who doesn’t like waffles._ It had eventually descended into Seonho and himself having a fight with the flour mix and the mix-ins (because of course Kang Daniel couldn’t just make _plain_ waffles.) and Guanlin somehow getting coated in the process, the ghost boy visible only through the splattering of flour and strawberries against his silhouette. (Seonho had found it incredibly funny, laughing at the flour covered outline of his indignant older brother) Guanlin had eventually run off to the bathroom for shelter, and Daniel couldn’t say he blamed the kid. 

The waffles somehow miraculously got finished, and when Daniel sat Seonho at the table with a plate, he could have sworn the small child was a vacuum. He ended up putting the plate in the microwave to avoid the child getting sick, despite being met with a loud “Papa!” in protest. 

Then came the challenge of bath time. 

Seonho was still covered in flour (The boy had also managed to get chocolate chips in his hair, how he had, Daniel didn’t know.) and ran away at Daniel’s every attempt to get him into the bathroom. Eventually he had coaxed him in with the promise of a bubble bath, and of course, the ever eager and curious boy had accepted. 

He had looked on, transfixed, as the bubbles had filled the tub, endless questions such as “Papa, what are those?” “Why are they so pretty?” “Why do they go away when I touch them?” spilling from his lips. Daniel had just smiled, explaining the bubbles as best he could (A quick google search had revealed bubble mix and bath had been invented after Seonho had died, and Daniel tried to ignore the pain in his heart when he caught sight of it). 

By the end, Daniel was soaked in water and there were bubbles all over the bathroom, Seonho still giggling happily as the water cooled. It was then that Daniel was struck by the fact that Seonho had no clothing other than what he was revived in, the old, worn pajamas tugging at Daniel’s heart in a way he didn’t like. He had ended up giving Seonho one of his older, smaller shirts that still went down to the boy’s toes (Daniel _totally_ hadn’t melted at the sight. Totally.) and had resolved to take the younger out shopping when he had the chance. Once changing himself, he walked up to his room, turning on cartoons on his laptop for the younger while he cleaned up the bathroom. 

An hour later, exiting the bathroom, Daniel heard voices from down the stairs and froze in place as he heard Jisung, Woojin, and Jinyoung’s voices floating upwards to greet him.

“Are you sure it’s okay to just show up unannounced like this, Jisung?” Asked Jinyoung, and Daniel thanked the boy for at least having _some_ common sense.

“He hasn’t called or texted in two weeks, his SNS is dead, and he didn’t even bother to reply to my emails. I’m a mom friend Jinyoung, it’s my job to do this.”

Daniel heard Woojin snickering, and had half a mind to smack all of his friends. That is until he heard footsteps creaking up the stairs.

“Hyung really lives in this house? It’s so old and creepy,” Jinyoung commented, and Daniel internally panicked as he assessed his options. He could shut himself in the bathroom, but then his friends might check in his bedroom and find Seonho. He could greet them head on, but he knew he wouldn’t last a second in an interrogation from Jisung. He could go to his bedroom and shut himself in with Seonho, but that would only lead to more questions from his friends. 

Suddenly, he felt a tug on the leg of his pants, Seonho staring up at him with his doe eyes and Daniel swore the boy could not have had worse timing if he tried. 

It was just then his friends reached the top of the stairs, and their eyes widened in unison as Seonho asked “Papa, who are they?” 

**( ~ * ~ )**

“So, care to tell me what the hell is going on here?” Jisung asked. He had corralled their friends into the kitchen, thankfully giving Daniel time to settle Seonho back into his room with his cartoons. He loved his friends, but he didn’t want this to be a conversation the child heard. 

Daniel flinched, looking away from the stares of his friends. “Yeah Hyung, who is that kid? And why was he calling you papa?” Woojin asked, an eyebrow quirked up. 

“Uh, it’s a long story,” Daniel said, trying to ignore the accusatory yet affirming glance Jisung threw his way. 

“We have time.”

 

By the end of his tale, Daniel was certain two out of three of them thought he was insane. Woojin was staring at him incredulously while Jinyoung looked around the house like he expected some sort of boogeyman to jump out at him at any moment. Jisung remained impassive, a comforting hand on his shoulder. He had assured them that Daniel had, in fact, been telling the truth, recanting the time in his kitchen when he had seen the two ghost boys playing with cars. 

“Hyungs, is this some sort of prank?” Woojin asked skeptically, his eyebrows up into his hairline as he crossed his arms. “Because if it is, it isn’t very funny.”

Expecting this, Daniel withdrew a bouncy ball from his pocket, sighing as he looked at his friend.

“Hey Guanlin, can you catch this for me?” 

The other boy had been clinging to his leg the whole time, Daniel’s hand petting his hair slowly as he explained his situation to his friends. He felt the boy nod and smiled, swaying his hand back and forth.

“Okay, 3… 2... 1… Catch!”

He threw the ball gently, creating a lazy arc through the air before it stopped entirely, slowly floating back into Daniel’s palm as he muttered a quiet “Thank you,” To the child. Woojin looked stunned, and Jinyoung looked about ready to run out of the house. 

“So, it’s real?”

“As real as you and me, Woojinnie.” 

“Can we,” Woojin hesitated, looking over at Jisung and Jinyoung before continuing. “Could we meet him? Seonho I mean. It would be a little less freaky than meeting an invisible kid, no offense,” Daniel slightly bristled at Woojin calling Guanlin freaky, but he remembered that he himself had called his situation that same thing once upon a time, so he allowed it to slide.

“Of course. Guanlin, could you go get your brother for me?”

**( ~ * ~ )**

In no time, Seonho had all three of Daniel’s friends wrapped around his finger. 

The boy had been hesitant at first, hiding behind Daniel’s legs as he explained who his friends were, but warmed up to them after a bit. He was sitting on the floor with the trio, coloring in a page from his favorite coloring book as the three cooed over him. He had immediately gravitated towards Jisung’s motherly presence, planting himself in the elder’s lap as soon as they sat down. He babbled incessantly, and they all smiled as he held up a shaky crayon drawing of six people that read “My Family” at the bottom, with all of their names scrawled over various stick figures. Daniel felt his heart swell as he saw himself, a scribble of pink crayon and “Papa” printed across the tallest figure. He ignored the odd feeling that swelled in his chest at the absence of Seonho’s mother in the drawing, instead replaced by his trio of friends. 

Seonho had pouted once he looked at the drawing again, wrinkling his nose before slamming it down to the floor.

“What’s wrong, Seonho?” Daniel asked, a look of confusion crossing his face.

“Papa, I don’t have enough room for Jihoonie!” 

Daniel tried to not let his smile waver as he looked at the younger, his heart rate picking up tenfold. “Why do you need room for Jihoonie, Seonho?”

“Because he’s right there!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i went to march for our lives yesterday, and it was so fun!! i went with my friends and we finally got to voice our opinions for once. i got recruited to speak at the next walkout in front of students from all over the county and got interviewed by a bunch of people on what it's like being a student right now with all of this going on. i'm excited in general, and i might be a little late next week because i have to start writing my speech. wish me luck!


	13. built for blame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **eyes can only see what they want when they're open-minded to the thought  
>  **Of getting hurt again, beaten to the bone****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it's a bit late, ive been dealing with a lot with the march and everything. it's also been hard on me with minwoo's death, i stan 100% so hearing that was just kind of... crushing for me i guess. i'm okay now, it just made it hard to function for a few days. to my other 100% stans, i love you and we can stay strong through this. minwoo loved us a lot, and we loved him as well. he is at peace, and what we can do is continue to support them as much as we can right now. we can do this, fighting!

Luckily for Daniel, Jinyoung, Woojin, and Jisung hadn’t been too perturbed by Seonho’s outburst, waving hesitantly towards the corner where the boy had pointed before returning to doting on the child. Daniel, however, felt an itch in the back of the mind the rest of the day as he sat with his friends. He couldn’t push the thought of Jihoon out of his head. Why had the boy been watching them when he wouldn’t even speak to Daniel was beyond him. It was only hours later when he lay with Seonho curled up on his chest, a movie playing on his laptop, that he found the courage to ask as the younger stirred in his sleep.

 

“Papa?” the boy asked, his eyes bleary with sleep and his hair adorably sticking out every which way as he rubbed his eyes with the hand that wasn’t clutched to Daniel’s shirt.

 

“Yes, Seonho?” He asked, splaying his hand across the child’s small back.

 

“Why aren’t you and Jihoonie friends?”

 

Well, that hadn’t been what Daniel had been expecting. He wasn’t sure how Seonho came to know the other ghost, let alone how close they were. He supposed he always thought Jihoon was more of a solitary ghost, but who could remain solitary with Seonho’s cute face? Daniel couldn’t fault him for that.

 

“I think Jihoonie is just shy, Seonho,” Daniel replied, running his hands through the boy’s hair. “Is he here right now?”

 

The boy shook his head, a lick of hair tickling at Daniel’s nostrils making a smile stretch across his face. “Well, Seonho, how do you know Jihoonie?” He asked, softening his voice as he spoke. He didn’t want to make the younger uncomfortable or upset, Daehwi had said that he might be fragile for a while after being brought back.

 

“Jihoonie came really late. Me and LinLin were first, then HwiHwi. Then Jaehwan-Hyung and Sungwoon-hyung came, but Jihoonie was last,” The boy had buried his face into Daniel’s chest, his words muffled through his shirt. “Jihoonie is really nice, he helped Daehwi keep Mama away from us. He plays with me and LinLin a lot and tells us lots of stories,” His voice fell to a whisper as he removed his face from Daniel’s chest, instead looking back to the laptop as he spoke. “But sometimes Jihoonie gets really really sad and stays in his room for a long time and doesn’t want to play. HwiHwi said that he’s just tired, but I know better. Sometimes he cries when he thinks we don’t hear.”

Seonho’s voice had reduced to a mumble, his ear resting on Daniel’s chest as his hand rubbed comforting circles on his back. “Jihoonie hasn’t been out to play in a long time, we didn’t have anyone to play with until Papa came, it was really lonely,” Daniel’s heart broke as he heard Seonho speak, humans were social creatures, but children especially needed human contact. To only have contact with a few people for 150 years, Daniel couldn’t fathom it.

 

“You won’t leave me, right Papa?” Seonho asked, his eyes shining with tears as he looked up at Daniel. He felt his heart seize at that moment, a profound mixture of love and sadness filling his veins as he looked at the boy in his arms, _his_ Seonho. Warmth spread in his chest as he looked at him, eyes filling with tears as he pulled Seonho, his _son_ , closer.

 

“I wouldn’t even dream of it.”

 

**( ~ * ~ )**

Living pseudo-alone in a giant house with ghosts, as Daniel found out, was not the best thing for his mental health.

 

Seonho had taken to playing with Guanlin more and more as of late, feeling bad that he had a body but his elder brother didn’t. The two had been inseparable as ghosts, but now that Seonho was no longer tethered to the house as he had been, he spent more time away from his brother, which after 150 years of being together, Daniel assumed was one _hell_ of an adjustment.

 

That’s how he found himself sitting in Jihoon’s room after two days of stewing in his own thoughts, ouija board in front of him as he stared at the letters.

 

“Jihoon-ah,” He said, consciously making an effort not to say ‘Jihoonie’ as he had grown accustomed to with Seonho. “I know you’re here,” He waited in silence for a while, sighing as the minutes ticked by and the planchette stayed still under his fingers. “If you won’t talk, I will,” He said, gnawing the inside of his cheek gently from nerves. “I just wanted to say thank you for keeping Seonho and Guanlin company all this time. They’re just kids you know,” He swallowed, resisting the urge to fidget and to keep his hand on the planchette. “But that’s the thing Jihoon-ah, they really love you, and they miss you. You can’t- you can’t just leave them with no explanation.” He swallowed again, biting his lip gently. “I understand avoiding me, okay? I get it. I’m new and I’m probably not someone you want to be around but they need you, okay? So if not for me, at least do it for them.”

 

He sat in silence for a while, nothing but the creaking of the house filling his ears before a tiny voice made him jump, spinning around to face it.

 

“You don’t understand.”

 

On the bed, sat Jihoon. He wore a loose, burnt yellow colored shirt and black pants. He was curled against the headboard, his hair covering his eyes. He was almost shimmering, and Daniel could see the wood of the headboard through his body.

 

“What don’t I understand, Jihoon-ah?” He asked, trying his best not to let the boy’s appearance rattle him.

 

“All I do is hurt people, don’t you understand?” He snapped, sitting up with his legs dangling over the edge of the bed. “I hurt you! I made you hurt the first time we met and you had to see that- that thing!” He yelled, and Daniel recoiled slightly, he hadn’t expected the boy to get that loud.

 

“Jihoon, you didn’t hurt me, okay?  I was scared, but I got better, didn’t I?”

 

“You did, but that’s not my point!” The other yelled, pulling lightly at his hair as he paced around the room. “People don’t deserve to hurt just because of me! I’m dead, I should have _stayed dead!_ But now I’m stuck here!” Tears ran down the boy’s face, and Daniel reached out to touch the other, his hand resting on his shoulder. It wasn’t quite tangible, Daniel likened it to resting your hand on a mound of bubbles. You could touch it, but the lightest pressure and your hand would sink through it.

 

“Jihoon, we all hurt people, you’re not a monster,” He said, and found himself frozen as the younger looked up at him, his eyes glazed over, yet filled with a fire that Daniel had never seen.

 

“Yes, I am.”

 

And then, as quickly as he had come, he was gone.


	14. maybe a dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **in my empty heart, I fill it with your existence**   
>  **so only yourself can surely come in**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait! i was gonna be just a little late but then school kept getting in the way (^^; ) anyways, i hope you all enjoy! i'm sorry i left you all for so long. writing my walkout speech is harder than i thought it would be ( ; ; ) but i'm back! and now neilwink is starting to ramp up (^^ ) i hope you guys like this!

Two days later, Daniel found himself laying on the bed once again, this time with Guanlin’s hand clasped in his. The tingling was intense just like the last time, flowing from his head through their intertwined hands, his fingers wiggling as the sensation passed. His heart raced as he fixed his eyes on the ceiling, the pull growing stronger and stronger until it eventually stopped. Before he knew it, Daniel was face to face with Guanlin, his eyes welling up with tears as he looked at his brother who immediately barreled into his arms. The siblings sat for a while, crying as they held each other. Guanlin babbled unintelligibly in Chinese while Seonho buried his face into his older brother’s chest, both shaking with sobs as their tiny arms encased each other like a vice grip.

 

Daniel walked over after a few minutes, gently petting the top of both of the boy’s heads before he found himself in the tangle of limbs, both boys crawling into his lap as they cried. He gently bounced both boys in his legs, rubbing their backs and cooing to them as they cried into his shirt, tiny wet spots making their ways onto his chest. Daniel couldn’t bring himself to care, too focused on the boys in his arms. A sensation he couldn’t quite place rose in his chest, a sad warmth that compelled him to bring the two impossibly closer. He felt like he was drowning, his head swimming as he held the two because all he could think of was that they were there and that they were _real_.

 

He looked down, the two heads of black hair pressed against his chest had stilled, their sniffles and sobs giving way in favor of tiny snores and grumbles. He smiled as he looked down at the two in his lap, hands carding through their hair as he let himself bask in the moment. It all felt so _right_ ; holding the boys, _his two boys_ , in his lap like that. It felt like his life was slowly falling into place, the two filling up an empty space in his heart he wasn’t even sure had been there. He hummed softly, a lullaby his mother had taught him long ago passing through his lips. It was incredibly domestic, something that Daniel hadn’t even _dreamt_ of at twenty-one, but it felt inexplicably right.

 

With a little (read: a _lot_ ) of effort, he managed to stand up, carrying both boys and somehow managing to set them down in a bed without disturbing their slumber. He smiled at them one more time, kissing their foreheads before turning to the door.

 

He started, letting out a small yelp as he spotted Jihoon in the door frame, eyes wide at being discovered.

 

“Jihoon-“

 

“I should go.”

 

“ _Jihoon_ ,” Daniel’s voice was pleading, his hand reaching out to grab Jihoon’s wrist unconsciously before he stopped himself. The younger boy hesitated, turning around and looking to Seonho and Guanlin.

 

“I should really leave, Daniel-“

 

“Not until you tell me what’s going on.”

 

His words clearly shocked Jihoon, the other wincing before returning his gaze to the elder. Daniel was tired of being in the dark about everything, of Jihoon running from him and letting him in only to kick him out again.

 

“Why do you keep doing this? Every time I think we’ve made progress you push me out Jihoon. I’m trying so hard, don’t you see that? I care about you, Seonho and Guanlin care. But all you do is push us out! What is _with_ you, Park Jihoon?”

 

Jihoon stepped away, taken aback by Daniel’s outburst. He had never been anything but patient towards him, the change of pace shaking him.

 

“Maybe we should move away from the kids’ room.”

**( ~ * ~ )**

 

The pair stood in the library, Daniel sitting in one of the leather chairs as Jihoon shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot.

 

“Jihoon.”

 

Daniel’s cold tone shocked him, his feet immediately stilling as he fixed his eyes on the ground.

 

“I’m not angry, okay?” Daniel said, and Jihoon could hear the tiredness in his voice. “I’m just so frustrated, Jihoon. Guanlin and Seonho love you so much, but you just push them away. And you push me away too without an explanation, I don’t get it. I want to help you, I want to _know_ you, Park Jihoon. But you won’t let anyone in.”

 

A long silence followed, the cogs in Jihoon’s brain turning as he tried to think of a response.

 

“I’ll hurt you all, you don’t understand,” He replied quietly, his eyes never leaving the floor.

 

“Because you won’t _let_ us understand, Jihoon. How can we understand anything if you won’t talk?”

 

“It’s more complicated than you realize,” He replied, gritting his teeth. “It’s easier for you all this way. Things are more complicated than you think.”

 

“I don’t know what to think,” Daniel replied, rising from his chair. “You’re such a mystery, Jihoon. Every time I talk to you it’s like a code. And maybe you don’t want to let us in, but it’s our choice if we want this or not. And maybe that’s hard to realize, but trying to control how we feel won’t solve anything.”

 

Jihoon stood far a while, his eyes still fixed onto the floor.

 

He shook slightly, his eyes filling with tears as Daniel’s words sunk in. He was right, Jihoon knew that much. But it wasn’t so _simple_. God, he wished it was. He wished he could just shed his inhibitions like an old t-shirt and let his walls down, but he couldn’t. Not as long as _she_ was around. She was fixed onto Jihoon, and he knew she wouldn’t leave him alone. The longer she stayed in the house, the more crazed she became. She followed him around, watched Guanlin and Seonho from the shadows. If it hadn’t been for the other spirits in the house protecting them, he was sure she wouldn’t have hesitated to stalk her two children.

 

He needed to protect them, the longer he spent with them, the bigger the targets on their back would become.

 

He didn’t dare tell Daniel this, because he knew how he would react. He was kind, too kind for his own good. He would set out to save Jihoon, to make him safe and risk himself in the process. Jihoon wasn’t stupid, he knew that Daniel and Daehwi were trying to break the curse, and he knew what that entailed.

 

He would try and save Jihoon.

 

But maybe he couldn’t be saved.

 

“I’m sorry, I can’t,” He pleaded, his eyes leaving the floor for the first time to look at the other boy. He had walked closer, now within arm’s reach.

 

“You _can_ , Jihoon.”

 

“I can’t, I’m sorry,” He said again, meeting Daniel’s eyes. They had softened from before, concern and sympathy swirling in the brown orbs as his gaze seared into Jihoon. Under it all was something else he couldn’t place, gentle like a candle flame but sharp like the shards of a broken mirror. It made him shudder, a wave of something hot and cold passing through his bones at the same time. He felt Daniel’s large hand splay gently across his back, shivering at the touch.

 

“Why won’t you let me in, Park Jihoon?”

 

“Why do you want me to so bad, Kang Daniel?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'll upload part 2 of this tomorrow, i promise not to leave you guys hanging! and for everyone who leaves such sweet comments, thank you all. you really make my day! i always smile when i get to read what you all write. you're all so sweet, i couldn't ask for any better.


	15. we're not forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **everytime everywhere**   
>  **i can only see you in my head**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's part 2!! hope you all like it~~

“Why won’t you let me in, Park Jihoon?”

 

“Why do you want me to so bad, Kang Daniel?”

 

Daniel sighed and ran his hand through his hair, removing his hand from Jihoon’s back. Against the boy’s better judgment, he found himself missing the heat of the hand on his back. There was something warm and familiar about it, something that made him feel safe. The elder looked at him tiredly, kindness still pulling at the corners of his eyes.

 

“Because you’re interesting to me, Jihoon. You shut me out so much, you shut everyone out even though it hurts you more and more each day. But you don’t have to go through whatever it is you’re going through alone. You insist on being alone, but I want you to know that you’re not alone. Is that too much to ask?”

 

Jihoon sat in stunned silence for a moment, his hands twitching at his sides as he resisted the temptation to fidget out of sheer nerves. Daniel didn’t understand, being alone was easy, being alone was _safe_. Everything was easiest when he couldn’t hurt anyone and when no one could hurt him. He found his voice caught in his throat, a vice gripping around his neck before he choked out “How would you know?”

 

Daniel gave a bitter smile, his hand running through his hair once again. “Because I haven't had it the easiest either, Jihoon. I bottled things up, I thought that if I ignored the things that hurt that they would ignore me too. But that’s not how it works. Sometimes we have to face the ugly things but we don’t have to do it alone. It may be easy but sometimes what’s easy isn’t always what’s right,” Daniel stepped closer to Jihoon again, his hand gently grabbing Jihoon’s own fingers hidden beneath the sleeves of his yellow uniform. “Are you tired of being alone, Jihoon?”

 

The question seemed to knock the wind out of him, the sudden insight into his own psyche like being dumped into a bucket of cold water on a hot day. He was tired of being alone. He was tired of running, he was tired of the days blending together in the house as he locked himself in his room, away from everyone he had grown to love inside the house. He was tired of the lonely nights, of the tears that slipped down his cheeks when Seonho and Guanlin would sit outside his door, begging for him to come out and play with them.

 

“I am tired, Daniel.”

 

“Then why do you keep running away?”

 

“I can’t tell you.”

**( ~ * ~ )**

After that night, Daniel found Jihoon was around the house more often. He walked in on him playing with Seonho and Guanlin, an old stuffed rabbit in his lap as the two boys sloppily put Daniel’s cosmetics on his face in a game of dress up. He had found it unbelievably cute, smiling like an idiot as he walked back down the stairs to brew himself a cup of coffee.

 

Now he stood with the two boys in the middle of Target, and he suddenly had a lot more respect for his mother.

 

Wrangling two rowdy boys who hadn’t seen the outside world in almost two centuries was tough, but he hadn’t anticipated it would be this difficult. The boys ran to anything they could find, inspecting everything with a curiosity Daniel was almost certain was reserved for mad scientists. He also had no earthly idea how two boys with such tiny legs could move so fast, and yet there he was, chasing after two tiny terrors whose names were quickly becoming “Get back here!” and “Slow down!” instead of Seonho and Guanlin.

 

By the end of the shopping trip, Daniel found himself much poorer than he’d begun and more tired than he ever thought he’d been in his life. When he got the two boys settled back into the car they had both sufficiently tired themselves out (thank _God_ ) and were fairly cooperative, content to fall asleep in the backseat as Daniel drove back to the house.

 

After carrying both boys to their room upon returning the took their haul from his trunk, dumping the bags onto his bed as he sorted out the boy’s clothes. He was grateful he didn’t have the two running around in his old shirts anymore as clothing, and had practically cried when he’d been able to buy more food for the three of them. As he sorted out their belongings, he found that Seonho had picked more tight activewear, small blue t-shirts and jeans to run around in, while Guanlin had picked more neutrals, sweaters, and sweatpants making up almost half of his new wardrobe. He smiled as he looked down at the piles, fondness flooding through his bones.

 

He was startled out of his stupor by a quiet knock at the door, his neck practically breaking as he whipped around to look. Instead of being met with what he had expected (two tiny terrors awake and ready to suck up all food in the immediate area) he was met with Jihoon, his arm extended with a small blue book in his hands.

 

“You dropped this,” He said in a small voice, eyes not quite meeting Daniel’s.

 

“Ah, Seonho’s new journal, thanks,” He replied, taking it gently from Jihoon’s hands. The boy had mentioned wanting a new journal to write about his adventure in, and Daniel being Daniel hadn’t had the heart to refuse him. Jihoon lingered in the doorway, almost as if he had something to say. Daniel quirked an eyebrow but otherwise stayed silent, opting to let Jihoon speak on his own terms.

 

“You really love them, don’t you?” He said after a while, still half hidden by the doorframe and his voice almost inaudible.

 

“Yes,” He replied, a small smile stretching across his face. “Like they were my own.”

 

“And you won’t leave them?”

 

“Not even in my dreams.”

 

Jihoon seemed to ponder this for a moment, his fingers drumming against the doorframe as he thought. His eyes darted around the floor before finally looking up to meet Daniel’s own and stepping out from behind the frame. He silently strode across the room and picked up one of Seonho’s shirts from the pile, folding the garment gently before setting it down and beginning on another.

 

Daniel went back to sorting the pile and smiled, he could get used to this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh boy, i'm so tired lately. but i'm glad i could get this out! thanks for bearing with me this long!


	16. lost in japan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **do I gotta convince you?**   
>  **that you shouldn't fall asleep?**   
>  **it'll only be a couple hours**   
>  **and I'm about to leave**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im putting this one up early so i can focus on my studies for the rest of the weekend, enjoy!

Daniel woke up in bed with two small, warm figures pressed against his sides. He smiled as he wrapped his arms around them, their steady breaths the only noise in the otherwise silent room. The brothers had taken to sleeping in his bed with him since they had been revived, often crawling into bed with him in the middle of the night or simply following into Daniel’s room when he went to bed. More often than not, Daniel awoke to two sleeping bodies next to him, and a warm feeling in his chest.

He slowly extracted himself from his bed, smiling as the two rolled over to where he had previously been laying, chasing his warmth. He changed into a fresh shirt and pair of basketball shorts, trudging to grab his phone from its charger while he woke up the children for breakfast. He’d quickly discovered that the two didn’t like waking up without Daniel around to calm them, and he couldn’t say he blamed them with their pasts.

Once he had herded the two sleepy children into the kitchen, he took out a box of cereal and three bowls and placed them down, asking Seonho to retrieve the milk from the fridge before taking out spoons for the three of them and pulling out chairs for all three.

Amusingly enough, cereal was one of Seonho and Guanlin’s favorite modern foods. They were transfixed by the bright colors and the games on the back of the boxes, and marveled at how sweet it was. They even loved to drink up the milk and make faces at Daniel from behind their boys, which totally _didn’t_ make his heart melt, if anyone was wondering.

Daniel unlocked his phone as the two argued over the importance of whatever game there was on the back of the box and nearly choked as he read his messages.

_From: Ong Seongwoo_

_Hi Daniel, I know we haven’t spoken in a long time but I wanted to get back in touch. I’m going to be in town for a week visiting family and was wondering if we could meet?_

_Sorry if that was too sudden, you don’t have to, but I really would like to catch up with you._

 

Daniel blinked rapidly, trying to make sure he had read the message right.

 

Before he knew it, his fingers were flying across his screen.

_To: Ong Seongwoo_

_sure, i have a new place now though lol._

_when are you in town?_

Daniel internally slapped himself, gnawing at his fingernails as he looked at his screen. He and Seongwoo hadn’t spoken since the other had moved to Japan, why was he just asking him now? Why did he want to meet with Daniel so badly?

 

_From: Ong Seongwoo_

_I’m glad to hear you have a new place, I’d love to see it sometime._

_I’m actually in town now, I just didn’t want to freak you out. We can meet whenever you’re comfortable._

 

Daniel found himself involuntarily sweating as he typed out his reply.

 

_To: Ong Seongwoo_

_i’m babysitting my sister’s kids for a while so they’d be here, if that’s alright._

_From: Ong Seongwoo_

_Sounds good! When do you want to meet? I’m free all week._

_To: Ong Seongwoo_

_today works for me_

_From: Ong Seongwoo_

_Sure! Does 4 work?_

_To: Ong Seongwoo_

_sure, see you then_

 

Daniel dropped his phone onto the table, running his hands through his hair. He looked at the clock and saw that it was already ten, giving him about six hours until Seongwoo arrived.

 

“Papa, what’s wrong?” Seonho asked, looking up from his bow of cereal to stare at Daniel inquisitively.

 

“Nothing kiddo, just go back to eating.”

**( ~ * ~ )**

 

Five hours later, Daniel was showered, dressed, and frantically running around the house trying to clean up the kid-induced-debris scattered around the house while Seonho and Guanlin watched cartoons in his bedroom. He’d explained that they should stay in his room, but if they needed anything to just yell for him.

Daniel had taken some of his downtime to call Jisung and yell, to which he’d only been told _“What did you expect, Niel? You are the one who invited him after all.”_

(Jisung was always right, but Daniel wouldn’t be caught dead saying that.)

The remaining hour seemed to both fly by and crawl forward at the same time. Time passed excruciatingly slowly, but still all too fast. He wrung his hands and paced in the foyer, jumping when he heard the doorbell ring. Of course Seongwoo was exactly on time, Daniel thought.

When he opened the door, he felt like he’d been punched in the stomach. Seongwoo looked as godlike as ever, his long legs clad in dark blue skinny jeans with leather shoes adorning his feet. He wore a loose light blue button-up that was half tucked, and of course, the same nervous half smile from all those years ago.

“Hi,” he said, and cursed himself for the way his voice shook.

“Hi,” Seongwoo replied, his smile still holding on his face. “Nice place, I definitely didn’t expect this when you told me you were living somewhere new.”

Daniel laughed nervously as he opened the door further, ushering the elder inside and leading him to the library. The walk teetered between awkward and comfortable, Seongwoo admiring all the décor of the house as Daniel led him to the library, and openly marveled at the collection of books inside.

“How’d you get this place, Niel? No offense, but there’s no way anyone at our age could afford this.”

Daniel laughed quietly, shaking his head. “It was a gift of sorts from my parents. I’m a groundskeeper of sorts,” _And live in ghost babysitter._

“Nice,” Seongwoo commented, and an awkward silence descended on the pair. Seongwoo sat in one of the plush chairs, Daniel following suit.

“I’m sorry,” Seongwoo blurted, catching Daniel off guard.

“What?” Daniel said, unable to think of an intelligible reply.

“I’m sorry I left,” Seongwoo replied, biting his lip as he looked at the ground. “It was unfair to you, Niel. I shouldn’t have done it.”

“ _Unfair_?” Daniel laughed, disbelief evident in his voice. “Seongwoo, I told you I loved you and the next day you flew to Japan and never came back. I poured my heart out and you moved to a different fucking country and never said a word to me afterward. That’s more than unfair, that’s cruel,” He spat, eyes narrowing.

“I know I fucked up Niel, I know, but I was scared. I’m so sorry-“

“You were scared? _You_ were scared? Seongwoo I poured my heart out to you after years of friendship and you just left. Scared doesn’t cut it, Ong.”

“I was scared because I love you too, Niel,” Seongwoo burst, his eyes fixed on the ground. Daniel felt like all the air had been sucked out of his lungs, his mind spinning as he looked at the other man.

“I left because I couldn’t handle what I was feeling and I didn’t know what to do, so I accepted the job offer in Japan and left. I was scared and confused and I know that isn’t an excuse but I need you to know I didn’t leave just because I was an asshole, okay?”

“That just- that makes it _worse_ Seongwoo.” Daniel choked out, tears pricking at his eyes. He had accepted that Seongwoo could never return his feelings, he had accepted that he had ruined their friendship with his confession. But _this_? This he couldn’t handle.

“Please leave,” He choked out, closing his eyes so he wouldn’t have to see the dejected look on Seongwoo’s face.

“Daniel-“

“ _Please_ , Seongwoo.”

Seongwoo stood up, sighing as he walked out of the room. “I really would like to keep in touch, Niel,”

“I’m not sure I can.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

( ~ * ~ )

Later, when Daniel curled up in his bed alone, eyes puffy and headache pounding, he could have sworn he felt hesitant fingers running through his hair, and a sweet lullaby floating through his ears as he drifted into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the walkout went amazingly! my speech went over really well and being able to stand with my friends today was really amazing. to anyone who also participated, thank you so much! i love you all!


	17. in my blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **help me, it's like the walls are caving in**   
>  **sometimes i feel like giving up**   
>  **but i just can't**   
>  **it isn't in my blood**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i just had to get this one done, i was wayyy too excited. updates will proceed as usual, so there will be another this weekend! i just got too excited when i wrote this, lol

When Daniel awoke, it was to a blessedly empty bed. He loved Guanlin and Seonho, he really did, but he wasn’t sure if he would have been able to care for them properly in his current state. When he walked into the bathroom adjoined to his room he saw his reflection and shuddered. He looked small, weak even, swimming in his large grey hoodie with the dark circles under his eyes. He looked pale and fragile, hugging the fabric of his hoodie closer to his frame as he walked towards the shower. He shed his clothes and neatly folded them before putting them on the counter.

As he stepped under the water, he couldn’t help but let his thoughts drift back to Seongwoo. Seongwoo, who could come into his life and turn his life upside down with three words. He had breezed into Daniel’s home and changed everything he’d thought he’d known.

He felt the tears pricking at his eyes, a distant pain tugging at his heart as he stood under the water. He forced the tears down, opting to instead scrub himself clean before exiting the shower and dressing himself in fresh clothes. He grabbed his phone before trudging down the stairs, but not before checking the kid’s room. He heard them laughing and giggling behind the door, so he assumed they were alright.

He sat in the kitchen alone, a small bowl of cereal in front of him that was left mostly untouched. He opened his phone, dread filling his chest as he saw three Kakao notifications that seemed to glare at him from the screen. With shaking fingers he opened the app, his eyes scanning the texts.

 

_From: Ong Seongwoo 3:25 am_

_Hi Daniel._

_I’m sorry for springing that on you. it was unfair._

_But I meant it. And I’m sorry for hurting you like that. You deserve better than what I did. I fucked up and if you don’t want to talk to me again, I understand that. I’m leaving for Japan on Friday and if you don’t want to see me again, I understand. But if you do, I’m staying at the Interpark Hotel on 6 th street. I’m sorry._

_To: Ong Seongwoo 10:32 am_

_i don’t think i want to see you again seongwoo, at least for now. i don’t think i can. maybe in the future, but not now. i’m sorry. i need time._

 

In no time, Seongwoo had replied.

 

_From: Ong Seongwoo_

_I understand. I’m sorry._

Daniel shook as he re-read the messages over and over, his emotions hitting him in waves. Seongwoo had been his best friend for 18 years before he had taken his modeling job in Japan after Daniel’s confession and left him in the dirt. Daniel had accepted that Seongwoo could never return his feelings, he had accepted that he had ruined what was between them. But now with everything turned up on its head, he wasn’t sure what he could be sure of anymore.

“Baba?”

Daniel started at the name, frantically wiping his eyes as he turned to face Guanlin.

“Yes, Linlin?” He cringed at how wrecked his voice sounded, wrecked from all his tears.

“Why were you crying?” Guanlin clambered up into his lap, and Daniel found himself unconsciously wrapping his arms around the small boy for comfort, pulling him to his chest.

“Baba’s just having a hard day, Linlin.”

“Is that why Jihoonie slept in our room last night?”

Daniel couldn’t help but thank his lucky stars for the ghost boy, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“Maybe it was Linlin, Jihoonie is very nice, isn’t he?”  
“Yeah! Almost as nice as Baba!”

**( ~ * ~ )**

Jihoon swears he was just in the library to get a book.

Daniel had been nice enough to start purchasing modern literature he thought Jihoon would like and put it on the empty shelves of the library, and Jihoon had finally finished the first Lord of the Rings book.

He just wanted a book.

Next thing he knew, Daniel was walking in with a man who looked like a god. He hid behind the stacks of books (He was an invisible ghost, it’s irrational, he _knows_.) and he knew he should have left then and there, but something more human, something more _alive_ , left him rooted to the spot.

The tension between the two was palpable, it was almost like you could cut it with a knife.

“I’m sorry,” The god blurted, and Daniel visibly started. Jihoon cocked his head in curiosity, Daniel had never had someone over before, why was this man here? And what did he need to apologize for?

“I’m sorry I left. It was unfair to you and I shouldn’t have done it.”

Jihoon had never seen Daniel tense up so fast, his shoulders drawing in and his back going rigid as he looked at the floor. He felt the urge to comfort the other man, but remained hidden behind the case.

 

“Unfair?” Daniel replied, and Jihoon recoiled as he heard the bitterness in his voice. He’d never heard Daniel be anything but sweet to anyone in the house, it was almost like he was someone else.

“Seongwoo, I told you I loved you and the next day you flew to Japan and never came back. I poured my heart out and you moved to a different fucking country and never said a word to me afterward. That’s more than unfair, that’s cruel.”

Jihoon clamped a hand over his mouth, feeling like he’d been punched in the stomach, tears welling in his eyes. Why was he so upset? Was it because Daniel was? Was it because he felt too much empathy for him?

“I know I fucked up Niel, I know, but I was scared. I’m so sorry-“

“You were scared?  _You_  were scared? Seongwoo I poured my heart out to you after years of friendship and you just left. Scared doesn’t cut it, Ong.”

“I was scared because I love you too, Niel.”

Jihoon stepped back, hand still over his mouth as he watched the events unfold in front of him. Daniel had tears in his eyes, and the god- _Seongwoo_ \- seemed more and more distressed. He didn’t know why his heart hurt so badly watching this, it was him who had decided to watch anyway.

“I left because I couldn’t handle what I was feeling and I didn’t know what to do, so I accepted the job offer in Japan and left. I was scared and confused and I know that isn’t an excuse but I need you to know I didn’t leave just because I was an asshole, okay?”

“That just- that makes it  _worse_  Seongwoo.”

 

Jihoon felt his heart shatter for Daniel, _his_ Daniel. The sweet man who watched two children who weren’t even his and took on the duty of breaking a curse within a house he didn’t even need to stay in out of the goodness of his heart. The Daniel who broke down his walls and let him smile.

 

As he saw Daniel choke up with tears, he sprinted out of the room, book long forgotten.

 

**( ~ * ~ )**

That night, Jihoon had made sure to sleep with the kids as he didn’t want to burden Daniel with the two. He figured it was the least he could do. He had come into Daniel's room to find him puffy eyed and groggy, and couldn't help but to run his hands through his hair and sing him to sleep  Again, it was the least he could do.  

He continued to entertain them long into the morning before he noticed Guanlin missing during their fort building with the old blankets left on the beds.

Jihoon ran into the hallways, ready to herd the boy back into the room before he could bother Daniel. He checked Daniel’s room first before the others, eventually running into the kitchen where he saw Daniel sitting with Guanlin in his lap, eyes puffy and shining from freshly shed tears as he held the child close.

“Baba’s just having a hard day, Linlin,” Daniel said, his eyes distant as he rested his head on Guanlin’s hair. Jihoon felt the weight on his chest grow even heavier, his heart aching for the other man as he sat there.

“Is that why Jihoonie slept in our room last night?”

Jihoon fought the urge to scream, hoping to god Daniel wouldn’t read too much into it. To his relief, a small smile played on Daniel’s lips instead, lifting the weight on Jihoon’s chest a little more.

“Maybe it was Linlin, Jihoonie is very nice, isn’t he?”

He felt his chest swell as he heard the words, his ears turning red as he heard the candid praise.

“Yeah, almost as nice as Baba!”

Jihoon could do this. For moments like this, the candid moments of raw emotion and happiness through heartache, he supposed to could make it through, especially for Daniel.


	18. you cause the rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **i am all swallowed up  
>  **welling up above my eyes  
>  **endlessly spilling down******

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning for murder and general dark themes within this chapter. i tried to focus more on the plot in this chapter, and for clarity, whenever they reference soojung, for those who don't remember, that's seonho, guanlin, and minhyun's mother

A week after The Seongwoo Incident™, Daniel had somewhat returned to his old routine. He woke up with the kids, took them downstairs to get breakfast, spent time with them and played with them until lunchtime rolled around, and then he’d hand them off to Jihoon as he visited Daehwi to devise how to go about doing their next resurrection. They had felt it would be best to leave Minhyun for last to be sure that they had as much prepped as possible and to avoid possibly angering Soojung.

Now, Daniel had been assigned to try and revive a ghost he hadn’t quite seen yet named Sungwoon.

He stared at the file on his desk, his eyes never moving from the words “ **HA INCIDENT** ” printed across the front of the manila folder. He reached out and shakily opened the old envelope, scanning through the contents.

 

_CASE FILE: Ha Incident_

_DATE: December 25 th, 1934_

_COMPLAINANT: Ha Sungwoon_

_CRIME: Murder in the first degree_

_VICTIM(S): Ha Sungwoon, Noh Taehyun_

_DESCRIPTION: Complainant called the police station claiming to be held hostage with his roommate in his own home by a long-time stalker. Call cut off abruptly and units were dispatched to the house where the complainant was found drowned in his own bathtub. The body of his roommate was found in the entryway stabbed, and it appears as though he tried to fend off the attacker. It appeared the stalker had tried to win his affections, and when they were rejected, killed the complainant. The perpetrator later turned himself in and apologized for his actions and is currently pleading insanity in a court of law._

Daniel felt sick to his stomach as he closed the envelope, shaking his head in disbelief as he ran a hand through his hair. Was this Soojung’s work? Had she made the stalker kill Taeyhun and Sungwoon like she’d made Jihoon’s father kill him?

He supposed there was only one way to find out.

 

( ~ * ~ )  


He sat on the bed of what Daehwi had told him was Sungwoon’s room, the navy bedsheets rippling like waves under his weight. Daehwi had told him that Sungwoon was very shy to strangers, and understandably would probably be more comfortable if Daniel talked to him for a while before he manifested. Daniel had come into the room at various times during the week just to talk about his day or ask Sungwoon, in vain, how he was.

But today felt different.

As he sat in the room, something by the curtain began to shimmer. It took him a while of staring before he realized that it was a body manifesting, the outline of a man slowly appearing in the room. He had the face of a child, but Daniel knew he was older than even himself in life. He wore a pair of beige slacks with a belt and a white shirt with suspenders attached. He looked hesitantly at Daniel, his eyes analytical before he spoke.

“Daniel?”

His voice was smooth and high pitched, but still soothing. Daniel offered a small smile to the elder before replying, making sure to keep his voice low.

“Hello, Sungwoon-ssi.”

“It’s okay, just call me Sungwoon,” The other replied, slowly walking towards Daniel. “I’m sorry I didn’t show myself earlier, I just have to be cautious in this house, y’know?”

“I know,” Daniel chuckled, glad the spirit was nothing like Minhyun. “I know all too well.”

A few beats of silence passed, and Sungwoon was the first to speak.

“I tried to do what you’re doing, break the curse I mean,” He blurted, taking Daniel by surprise. “Taehyun and I did. We tried together and it’s why we died. It backfired majorly on us and that’s why we’re, well-“ The man sighed in frustration, rubbing his face with his hands. “I’m just saying to be careful, okay? You’re further than both of us got, but you need to be careful.”

“What?” Daniel said incredulously, his brain working a mile a minute to process what he’d been told. “But I- I thought you just died because of a stalker?”

“I did,” He said, smiling bitterly. “He had been following me for a while, but after I moved here it got worse. I think Soojung made him worse because I pissed her off. But I came home on Christmas with Taehyun after shopping for food and he was waiting. When I freaked out Taehyun tried to fend him off and he-“ Sungwoon choked back a sob, and Daniel found himself standing up to put a comforting hand on the man’s arm. “He stabbed him and just left him there. But then he was so nice, he took my groceries out of my arms and went to put them away for me to be ‘a good boyfriend’ and when he was gone I called the police. The line got cut mid-call, and I never figured out if he had done that or Soojung had. He had made us this big dinner and had me sit down with him to eat with him while he talked about all these plans he had for us. Then he took me upstairs and said he was going to ‘show me a good time’ and that’s when I shut him down. I told him I just wanted to go see my mom, that I didn’t want to stay with him and I was sorry, and that’s when he shoved me into the bathroom and-“ He took a deep breath, screwing his eyes shut. “He drowned me there. Now the two of us are trapped here because of the curse. Soojung doesn’t want us, but we’re still here,” He looked Daniel in the eyes, seriousness gripping his voice.

“Be very careful with her Daniel, especially when it comes to Jihoon. She’s capable of nasty, nasty things.”

Daniel could feel the headache building behind his eyes, how many people had to suffer such horrible fates at the hands of Guanlin and Seonho’s horrific mother? What the hell was this woman capable, and what did Jihoon have to do with any of it?

“What do you mean about Jihoon?” He asked, head still spinning. Sungwoon’s eyes darkened, and he looked guilty, almost as if it was something he shouldn’t have said.

“Jihoon is her favorite, he’s her ideal son. She manipulates him and hates anyone who tries to get near him. Before Taehyun and I knew you had to have a personal connection to the person you revived, we first tried to get Jihoon, but of course, he rejected it. Back then, he was still dependent on her because it had been such little time since he died. When she found out was when shit hit the fan with the stalker, and you know what happened from there,” He sighed, patting Daniel’s arm. “Just be careful, okay? I don’t want to see this house take another life.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **the moment I hesitated  
>  **you turned around  
>  **but you’re already getting far away  
>  **i’m running to you********

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for missing the last update, i had prom and finals are coming up now, so i've been swamped so they might be a bit weird from here on out for a little bit ( ; ; ) thank you for all being patient with me~ i hope you like this

A week later, Daniel hadn’t mentioned what Sungwoon had told him to Jihoon.

He had saved the information, trying to process it as he worked on building up his connection with Sungwoon. He found himself in the elder’s room more than expected, even bringing in Seonho and Guanlin, who promptly greeted Sungwoon with screams of ‘Uncle Woonie!’ and their famous tackle hugs that could knock over even the strongest football player.

Thankfully, after the revival process had been finished with Sungwoon (Which had needed the addition of some of Seonho and Guanlin’s energy to avoid draining Daniel completely, which he had _not_ been happy about) the elder had decided to begin helping with various activities around the house, even making breakfast for Daniel and the kids.

(Daniel _swears_ Ha Sungwoon himself is an angel, there is no other explanation for his heavenly pancakes.)

Taehyun had been revived by Sungwoon alone and hadn’t exactly warmed up to the odd family, opting to hide away in him and Sungwoon’s shared room while he recovered. Daniel had interacted with him all of once, that being when he had waddled to the bathroom during a movie and he had found Taehyun in the hall peeking into the room. However, when Daniel had spotted him, he had promptly spun around on his heels back to his room, grumbling something that sounded suspiciously like “Stupid Sungwoon, trusting people so easily like we aren’t all _fucking ghosts_.” And honestly, Daniel had had no good rebuttal.

Now Daniel sat in the library, blissfully alone as Sungwoon had taken the children outside to the garden to do yard work. _read: get their energy out in a way that didn’t involve destroying the house_. He sat with a copy of an old Grimm’s fairytale book, his eyes only lazily skimming the pages as he sat in the sunlight pouring through the library window.

He started slightly as he heard footsteps within the library suddenly, still not entirely used to the _ghosts popping out of nowhere_ thing that seemed to be a new constant in his life. He smiled as he saw Jihoon padding through the library, his yellow sweater and grey slacks in stark contrast to Daniel’s ripped skinny jeans and an old t-shirt.

Jihoon paid him no mind as he waltzed through the library, eventually climbing up the rolling ladder to look at the volumes on the taller shelves. Daniel had once asked why Jihoon did, well, normal human things when he had supernatural abilities. He had just responded that it made him feel more human, a smile on his face the entire time.

Daniel had pretended his heart hadn’t skipped a beat.

Jihoon climbed down the ladder with three large novels, adding them to the pile he had already selected on the floor. When he picked them up, Daniel was amused to see his eyes barely peeked out above the books. He couldn’t help the smile that grew on his face, but it quickly turned to concern as Jihoon wobbled on his feet, obviously unbalanced by the weight of the books. On instinct, Daniel rose to help him, grabbing half of the books from Jihoon’s arms with ease before flashing the younger a small smile. Jihoon ducked his head, muttering about how Daniel ‘Didn’t have to’ to which the elder had replied: “I may not have to, but I want to”. (Which totally _hadn’t_ made Jihoon blush, by the way.)

The younger had led him to his room, setting the books down in the corner beside the fireplace before turning to Daniel. A pregnant pause filled the room, and Daniel found himself scrambling to fill it.

“Why do you like books so much?”

Daniel slapped himself internally and cursed his awkwardness, this is why he’d always needed Jisung to rescue him at parties. But Jihoon just gave him a small smile, and he felt his heart warm a fraction more.

“I needed a way to pass the time. Almost 100 years is a long time to be alone with no one, so I started reading. People would bring new books and I’d read them as soon as I could,” A sad smile spread across Jihoon’s face, and Daniel felt the urge to comfort him well up in his chest.

“I guess I just like how you can live in an entirely new world when you read. You aren’t you, you’re someone else living in a different world. No one exists but you and the pages, and you only feel what the author makes you feel.” Jihoon smiled again, his fingers tracing the spine of one of the books as he sighed, and Daniel found himself giving in to the urge to comfort him.

“But now you have us, yeah? We’ll make sure you don’t feel so lonely anymore” _You have me, I will make sure you aren’t lonely._ Daniel found himself thinking.

Jihoon smiled again, tears welling up in his eyes as he looked at the elder. “Thank you, Daniel. Really. But I think,” His eyes cast down to the floor, his smile dropping. “I think I’m okay with my books for now.”

Daniel couldn’t place why he felt like he’d been stabbed, why he felt like he’d been slapped across the face when all Jihoon had done was spoken. He supposed it was because he felt like they had been making progress, taking care of Seonho and Guanlin together and falling into a routine. Bit by bit Jihoon had opened up to Daniel, and he had just begun to feel as if he could see the boy for what he was.

“Jihoon, I’m not leaving,” He said, his mouth moving before his brain could catch up. Jihoon looked taken aback from where he stood in the attic room, their faces inches apart as Daniel rested a hand on his shoulder.

“Everyone leaves,” The younger replied after a heavy pause. “Don’t you get it? I’m stuck here Daniel, we all are. No one’s changed that in almost 150 years” Jihoon grew cold as he stepped back and shrugged Daniel’s hand off, the blonde feeling his heart sink in his chest.

“I can change that, Jihoon,” Daniel said, his voice almost pleading. “You don’t have to be afraid or alone, can’t you see that?”

“I can’t, Daniel!” The younger burst, his cheeks turning red. “After 100 years, I can’t! I’m sorry but I can’t. Sungwoon and Taehyun died trying to save me, can’t you see you’re being stupid?! You’re going to die too, Daniel. You’ll die and we’ll all be stuck here, can’t you see? Soojung always wins Daniel, _always_.” Tears spilled down Jihoon’s face as he walked backward, eyes refusing to meet Daniel’s.

“But I _won’t_ die,” Daniel rebutted, walking towards the smaller boy. “Jihoon I will get this _right_ , okay? I’m sick of seeing you like this, so lonely and hurting so much. I won’t hurt you Jihoon, I couldn’t,” He confessed, and Jihoon shook his head.

“Why do you care so much?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Daniel challenged, an eyebrow raised as he looked at the other.

“Because I’m just some ghost, you don’t need to help me. You don’t even know what will happen to us and yet you’re willing to _die_ , to put your own life on the line. You should just leave and not look back, Daniel, why the hell do you care?” Jihoon shouted, his face inches away from Daniel’s again.

Daniel pulled at his hair, letting out a groan as he looked back down at Jihoon. “I care because you all don’t deserve to be like this, you’re _hurting_ , how can I ignore that? How can you expect me to walk away from that? Do you think I’m someone who would?”

“I-I don’t,” Jihoon replied, “I just wish you would, Daniel, you don’t deserve to be caught up in all this.”

“Neither do you,” Daniel replied, gathering Jihoon into his arms for a hug before he could give it a second thought. “I won’t walk away from you, okay? Never.”


End file.
